Why do rainbows only come when it rains
by Lilylulu
Summary: Cappie and Casey share a night of passion that results in an unexpected surprise. Multiple characters: C/C, Ashleigh/Beaver, Rebecca/Evan, Rusty/Jordan, Calvin/Heath.
1. Crazy Beautiful

CRAZY BEAUTIFUL

Fall semester of her senior year was pretty uneventful. Sure there were sorority competitions, classes and the weekend frat parties but no huge events. Nothing she could look back on to remember her senior year fall semester. So Casey was looking forward to the spring semester of her senior year. She wasn't quite sure what would make this such a memorable time for her but she was determined to figure something out. She only had four more months before she graduated and certainly wanted to make the most of them.

Her love life was non-existent. She hasn't had a serious boyfriend since she broke up with Max. She was hoping Cappie, the love of her life, would finally come around and want to be with her. But that wasn't the case. She knows he still has feelings for her but is left dumbfounded as to why they can't be together.

It's the first Friday night of the semester. All her classes the first week were easy so she had the whole weekend to do whatever she wanted. But she quickly found herself alone in the ZBZ house with nothing to do. Ashleigh was spending the night at Fisher's and some of the other girls went to a movie that she didn't care to see. She was about to change her clothes and head to Doblers when her phone rang. It was Cappie.

"Hello."

"Casey, Casey, Casey," Cappie yelled into the phone. "Where have you been all my life girl?"

"Cap what do you want?" Casey asked with a smile.

"Can't a guy call one of his best friends whom he hasn't seen in over a month?" replied Cappie.

"Well yeah, but you sound kind of drunk."

"OK, OK, you got me!" Cappie yelled into the phone again. "I lost count after 9 but maybe I'm on beer 14? 15?"

"Cap where are you at?" Casey asked somewhat worried into the phone.

"Ummmm, I'm not sure," he replied with a laugh.

"Seriously Cap, focus," she said. "I'm coming to get you."

"No, no, no, no, no, no, no," Cappie repeated several times. "I'm fine! I'm here with my Beaver!"

Cappie then began to laugh hysterically.

"My Beaver," he said pulling the phone away from his ear. "That totally sounds pervy!"

"CAPPIE!" Casey screamed into the phone to get his attention. "Put Beaver on the phone!"

"I think he left," Cappie replied.

"Oh my gosh I'm talking to a 5 year old," Casey said sternly. "Cappie! Tell me what you see around you right now so I can figure out where you are."

"Oh, I see a bar," he said softly

Casey rolled her eyes. She could figure out that much without him telling her.

"Keep going," she said.

"And some men, and a pool table and ooh the prettiest neon signs you ever did see," he replied.

Just then it hit Casey. He was at the Lite and Easy.

"Cap I'm coming to get you right now. Don't move."

But there was no reply. Cappie had hung up the phone. Casey quickly grabbed her car keys and coat and headed out of the house.

* * *

Around 10 minutes later Casey pulled the door open to the Lite and Easy and looked anxiously around the room for Cappie. It took her a second but she saw him face down in his arms at the bar.

"Cap, let's get out of here," she said nudging his arm.

Cappie sat up startled.

"Case what are you doing here?" he asked.

"You called me," she said. "Don't you remember?"

"No not really," he said with a smirk. "But since you're here let's play some pool."

Casey eyed Cappie wondering where he had gotten this second wind all of a sudden to play pool.

"OK," she said. "But the minute you start passing out we're leaving."

"Don't worry. I can go all night baby," Cappie whispered softly into her ear as he got off the barstool and walked back to the pool table.

They played two games. Casey had won them both. She opted to not drink since she had to drive but Cappie continued to slam down 4 more beers while they played. Casey could tell there was something wrong but wasn't sure what it was. Sure Cappie drank a lot but for some reason he was going overboard this night.

"One more," he said as she finished the 2nd game. "third times the charm."

"No Cap," replied Casey "You're starting to stumble. It's time to head out of here."

"Alright," he replied almost falling over his pool cue.

Casey ran over and put her arms on him to steady him.

"Thanks," he replied with a smile.

Casey slowly helped Cappie out to the car. And as it were on cue he threw up as soon as they walked out of the Lite and Easy.

"Ew, no more ravioli for me," Cappie said as he wiped his face.

Casey's face cringed at the thought and continued to lead Cappie to the car. Cappie managed to hold the rest of his dinner down the ride home. She pulled to the front of the Kappa Tau house and started to open her door when Cappie stopped her.

"Wait," he said. "I can't go back there tonight."

"Why?" Casey asked shutting the car door.

"I got into a fight with my brothers," Cappie replied as he looked remorsefully at the ground.

"About what?" she asked wanting Cappie to continue

"You," he said softly as he looked up to meet her eyes.

Casey took a deep breath in as she was shocked at what she heard.

"You see I broke up with Lana at the end of last semester and after that I began cleaning again. And at first the guys thought it was over her but they figured out it was because I kept thinking of you. So we got into the big conversation about risks and the future. Gosh I don't even know anymore. All I know is that they told me not to come back unless I was with you or over you."

Casey was speechless. She didn't know what to say. They stared into each other's eyes for several minutes. Each of them began to lean in closer towards each other for a kiss when Cappie turned around quickly opening the car door and throwing up on the ground.

"I'm so sorry," he said leaning his head back against the seat.

Casey started the car back up and began to drive down Greek row.

"Where are we going?" Cappie asked.

"Well if you can't sleep at your house tonight I might as well keep an eye on you at mine," she replied. "Ash is spending the night at Fisher's so you should be alright."

"You're an amazing friend Casey," Cappie replied as his eyes started to droop.

Casey parked her car in front of the ZBZ house. Most of the house was dark so she figured the girls were either asleep or still out at the bars. She went over to Cappie's door and opened it.

"Come on," she said waking him up. "Let's get you to bed."

Cappie opened his eyes half way and took Casey's hand as she helped him out of the car and up to the front door.

"Now you have to be on your best behavior," she said before opening the door. "Boys usually aren't allowed upstairs."

Cappie nodded his head in agreement as she quietly opened the door and escorted him up the stairs. Once she reached her room and the door was shut she knew she was safe. None of the girls had seen them. She walked Cappie over the Ashleigh's bed and he loudly plopped down still half asleep. Casey quickly changed into her pajamas and went downstairs. She grabbed a bottle of water and a bowl in case Cappie had any of his dinner left in him.

When she returned to the room Cappie had made himself at home. He stripped down to his boxers and t-shirt and was nestled under Ashleigh's covers sound asleep. Casey went over and set the water and bowl next to him. She looked at him so peacefully sleeping. She leaned in and gave him a small kiss on the cheek.

"Night Cap," she said as she went over to her bed and fell asleep.

* * *

A noise startled Casey. She looked at the clock: 3:45 am. She let her eyes adjust to waking up and suddenly felt Cappie next to her.

"Cap what are you doing?" she asked softly.

"Shhhh," Cappie replied as he got on top of her straddling her between his legs.

Casey looked up at him and into his eyes. He looked gorgeous as ever. His hair was loosely hanging in his eyes and the grin on his face told everything he was thinking. She wasn't sure at first exactly where this was going but Cappie quickly filled that uncertainty. He plunged his face forward towards hers and began to passionately kiss her., his tongue forcefully playing a game of hockey with hers. She was so ready for this. She was so ready for _him_. Cappie sat back on his knees as he pulled her up to a seated position. He quickly took her shirt off as she repeated the same to him. He suddenly stopped kissing her and backed away a little. Casey almost reached for her shirt to put back on regretting what she was doing for a second when he began to speak.

"I love you Casey," he softly said as he leaned in to give little kisses on her neck.

"I love you too Cappie," she replied.

The rest of the time was such a blur for the both of them. All Casey knew was that she heard the words out of Cappie's mouth she had waited so long to hear. He loved her. He said it three more times to her during the sex. Each time wrapping his arms around her a little tighter and lightening his kisses ever so slightly. That night was the best sex she had ever had. Better than she had remembered it from before with him. She was so happy the two of them had gotten back together. This was the major event she was looking for this semester. She just couldn't believe it was happening this soon. She made a mental note to thank his brothers when she saw them next. They seemed to finally knock some sense into Cappie.

* * *

_Thanks for reading everyone! I LOVE reviews so please review if you have the chance. I'm REALLY proud of this story. I have over 12 chapters written already (and no where near finished!) so expect updates often! Hopefully this story will get us through the hiatus until January 25th!_


	2. Been There Before

BEEN THERE BEFORE

It was around 8 when Cappie woke up. He first noticed the most pounding headache he had ever had wishing it would go away. But that thought quickly went away when he noticed Casey sleeping next to him. It took him a second to realize he was not at his house. He was at the ZBZ house. He tried to think back to last night and what had gotten him there but could only remember little bits and pieces. He slowly lifted the blanket up to look under it. Yup, they were both naked. He didn't have to think too much about that development. He knew him and Casey had sex last night. Cappie looked over at her sleeping soundly next to him. Mixed emotions of content and regret were flooding his already pounding head. He needed to get out of there.

So he stood up and began searching next to the bed for his boxers and clothes. He tried to put them on as quickly and quietly as he could so he didn't wake her up. He wasn't sure what to say to her if she did wake up. Heck, he wasn't even sure what really happened last night other than the fact that the two of them had sex. He wondered if he enjoyed it. Oh come on now it was Casey! Of course he enjoyed it!

He slipped his last shoe on and began to head to the door when he remembered he wasn't supposed to be there. No boys allowed upstairs. So he tip-toed over to the balcony door and almost reached it when he hit his foot on Ashleigh's bed making a loud thud. This startled Casey as she sat up in the bed.

"Cap?" she asked. "Where are you going?"

"Uh, I , uh," he began to stutter. "I have to get home. House meeting."

"At 8 in the morning on a Saturday?" Casey asked looking at the clock.

"Yeah, real important stuff to discuss," Cappie replied halfway out the door. "I'll see you around!"

With that Cappie shut the balcony door and descended onto the lawn. Casey sat there staring at the door thinking how strange his reaction was. She thought she would wake up in his arms and the two of them would have a wonderful day together. Tears started to form in the backs of her eyes. She thought back to her one night stand with him over a year ago. Only this time the opposite was happening. He had left her like what they just experienced meant nothing to him. For once she felt like she had put herself in his shoes. The pain she was feeling right now was the pain he probably felt that morning a year ago. She laid back down trying to force herself to go back to sleep. She would just talk with him later.

* * *

Cappie hadn't come out of his room since he came home. After four o'clock rolled around and he had not been seen Rusty was the unlucky one elected to go and check on him. He slowly walked up to Cappie's door and knocked as lightly as he could hoping Cappie wouldn't hear and he could just walk away. But he heard Cappie's soft words of "come in" and entered the room. Cappie was lying on his bed with his hands behind his head.

"Cap are you OK?" asked Rusty. "Where were you last night?"

"You guys made it pretty clear that you didn't want me to come home," Cappie said in a stern voice. "So I didn't come home."

"Listen Cap, you know we only did that for your own good," Rusty replied. "We are your brothers and no matter what we're going to be there for you."

Cappie just turned his head to look out the window. Somehow he had a hard time believing that after the argument they had last night.

"So what did happen last night?" Rusty asked as he took a seat in a chair next to Cappie's bed.

"Russ, you're probably the last person I want to discuss last night with right now," Cappie replied.

"So you saw Casey," stated Rusty ignoring Cappie's last remark.

Cappie took a deep breath. "Yes, I saw Casey."

"And what happened?" asked Rusty

Cappie turned and stared at Rusty raising his eyebrows. He hoped Rusty got the hint.

"Oh," Rusty replied becoming somewhat uncomfortable with the situation.

There was a brief silence.

"Well at least you two are back together then," Rusty finally stated.

Cappie took another deep breath. "We're not together Spitter," he replied.

"What?" Rusty said standing up "How are you not together? After uh, you know, last night."

"It's complicated Spitter," Cappie replied.

Rusty was as confused as ever. He couldn't think of two people more deserving to be together than his big brother and big sister.

"Cap what's stopping you from being with her?" Rusty finally asked.

Cappie stared at him and sat up on the edge of the bed, burying his head into his hands.

"I'm not good enough for her," said Cappie softly.

"That's ridiculous!" said Rusty. "With the number of girls you have coming in and out here you have to be amazing!"

Cappie gave Rusty and awkward look and then smirked.

"I wasn't talking about_ that_ Spitter," he said.

"Oh," Rusty replied feeling uncomfortable again.

"I'm not good enough for her because I have no future," Cappie continued. "I haven't declared a major and it's already my senior year Rusty. I don't know what I'm doing in the next 10 minutes, let alone 10 years. I'm the guy that Casey wants, but not the one she needs. She needs someone like Max. Someone who is more focused and driven in life than I am. I have nothing to look forward to in my future."

"Isn't life with Casey enough to look forward to?" asked Rusty.

"I wish it was," Cappie replied. "But I'm not setting myself up again to have my heart broken because I'm not good enough."

Rusty wasn't sure what to say. He nodded at Cappie's last remark because he could honestly see where his big brother was coming from. Having your heart broken by a girl is not fun. At the same time he was amazed at Cappie's remarks. He's always seen Cappie as in control and confident. It was certainly a change to see one of his insecurities.

"If you don't mind Spitter I think I just want to be alone," said Cappie when Rusty hadn't replied.

"Oh, OK," said Rusty walking over to the door. "But just know that if you ever decide you want to take that risk you have a whole house of brothers who will be here to support you. And in the unfortunate case that your heart is broken again, we'll be here to pick up the pieces. Please believe we meant well last night Cap."

"I understand," Cappie nodded. "I'll see you around."

"Bye," Rusty replied as he walked out and shut the door.


	3. On the Rocks

ON THE ROCKS

A week had passed and Casey knew Cappie was avoiding her. And it hurt. Even when Cappie wasn't her boyfriend he was still one of her best friends. Not talking to him made her feel so empty inside. She had to admit, however, she made it very easy for him to avoid her because for the past week she really only left the house to go to class. Sappy movies on Lifetime and late night ice cream binges had become a regular in her now pitiful life. She wasn't sure why Cappie had always had this kind of effect on her. She thought for sure that the two of them only needed that one magical night together to realize they were meant to be. But that night happened last week and it was very clear that it made things worse.

"Come on Case," said Ashleigh walking into their room. "It's a Saturday night. Let's head to Doblers."

"I don't think so Ash," Casey replied. "I'm just not in the mood."

"You've been moping around here for a whole week now," Ashleigh replied. "I think it will make you feel better if you got out a little bit."

"But what if I see Cappie there," Casey began to almost wine.

"I hope you do," Ashleigh replied honestly. "Maybe you two could actually talk instead of avoiding each other."

"I'm not avoiding him," Casey snapped. "He's avoiding me."

Ashleigh just rolled her eyes. She walked over to Casey's closet and pulled out a pair of jeans and a striped shirt.

"Put these on and be downstairs in 10 minutes," she said handing the clothes to Casey.

Casey stared at her blankly.

"I mean it," Ashleigh stressed as she glared at Casey and walked out the door.

Exactly 10 minutes later Casey came slowly walking down the stairs and met Ashleigh.

"I'm not going to have any fun," she said as they walked out of the house.

The two arrived at Dobler's and found a table near the bar. Ashleigh ordered each of them a beer.

"You see, this isn't so bad," she said to Casey as she took a sip of her beer.

Casey looked around the bar and was relieved to find no sign of Cappie or his brothers. She was about to take a drink of her beer when someone came by and tapped her on the back.

"Hey Case, haven't seen you around much this semester."

"Oh you know me Evan, just keeping myself busy," Casey replied.

"Are you still doing Pan-Hellenic?" asked Evan. "I didn't see you at the joint meeting this week."

"Yeah, I'm still involved," she replied. "I missed the meeting because I wasn't feeling too well that's all."

"Well glad to see you're feeling better now," Evan stated. "Hopefully I'll see you there next week."

"You sure will," Casey said forcing a smile on her face as she tapped beer glasses with Evan.

"Hey have you seen Cappie around at all?" asked Evan. "I haven't seen much of him either."

Casey froze at the question. She wasn't sure how to respond.

"Oh I, uh, saw him last week briefly but nothing since," she replied.

"I called him yesterday to see if he wanted to play some golf today," Evan continued. "I got his voicemail and he never called back. That's really not like him."

"Well, heh, you know Cappie. Maybe he's planning another crazy party," Casey said trying her best to hold her composure when it came to talking about Cappie.

"Yeah, you're probably right," Evan replied.

It was almost on cue that the door to Dobler's swung open and several Kappa Tau brothers came pouring in. The two of them search the group for Cappie. He emerged the last one through the door, looking like he didn't want to be there as much as Casey did.

"Hey Cap!" Evan yelled. "Come on over here!"

Cappie appeared somewhat relieved to get away from his brothers and see Evan. But the look on his face quickly faded when he noticed Evan was sitting with Casey.

"Hey guys, how are you?" Cappie managed to say approaching the table.

"I'm going to go and find Calvin," said Ashleigh. "You can have my seat Cappie."

Ashleigh left and Cappie stood next to her seat, not wanting to sit down.

"Come on Cap, sit down," said Evan. "I'll go get you a drink."

Evan left the table leaving Cappie and Casey there alone. She took a drink of her beer looking the other way across the room, not wanting to make eye contact with Cappie. She feared if she did she may start crying.

"So here we are, the three musketeers again!" said Evan returning to the table with a beer for Cappie.

Neither of them replied. Evan could sense the awkwardness between the two of them.

"Something wrong?" he asked Cappie.

"No, no, nothing's wrong," he replied taking a drink of his beer. "Why do you ask?"

"Well it doesn't take a mad scientist to see the tension going on between you two right now," Evan replied. "I don't think Casey's even looked at you since you got here."

Casey turned to look at Evan and reverted her stare back to the other side of the room. She didn't have anything to say to either of her ex-boyfriends at the moment.

"Come on guys, it's our last semester. Don't do this," Evan begged. "I thought the three of us were going to start over and move forward. I thought we were all going to be friends again."

"Sorry Ev," said Cappie. "I just think there is too much history to start over."

"Well that wouldn't be the case if _someone_ wasn't afraid of history repeating itself," Casey snapped, not bothering to look at either boy.

"Maybe some of us just don't want to go through that crap again," Cappie snapped back.

"Nice to know that you think of what we had as crap," Casey replied. It was the first and only time she looked at Cappie that night. Their eyes met for a second. She felt a huge amount of anger start to build up inside of her. She slammed down her glass and walked out of Dobler's.

"Um, did I miss something?" asked Evan as he watched Ashleigh glare at the two of them and run out after Casey.

Cappie just took a deep breath and chugged his beer.

"It's nothing," he replied as he started to walk away.

"Hold up," said Evan standing up next to Cappie. "You two hooked up didn't you?"

Cappie wanted to turn around and run out of there as fast as he could. Along with Rusty, Evan was the next person on the top of his list he didn't want to discuss things with. Evan took Cappie's silence as a 'yes.'

"Cap didn't we agree that things would get awkward if one of us hooked up with Casey again? How could you go and do this?"

"Look dude, you don't understand," Cappie replied.

"Well make me understand then," Evan snapped.

"I was drunk OK? If it makes you feel any better I don't really remember any of it."

Cappie stopped there. He couldn't believe he had admitted even this much to Evan.

"Oh, OK," replied Evan appearing satisfied with Cappie's answer. "Don't worry about it man. I'm sure it will blow over eventually. You guys got through the rush night hook up last year. This one is really no different right?"

Cappie thought about what Evan had said for a second.

"Yeah, I guess you're right," he replied. "I just want things to go back to the way they were."

"They will buddy," said Evan putting his arm around Cappie. "Now are you going to join me for a few more drinks?"

"As long as your broke ass is buying," Cappie replied with a smile.


	4. Your Illusion

YOUR ILLUSION

February quickly approached for the students at CRU. For Casey, things were starting to finally get back to normal. It had been about a week and a half since her Dobler's incident with Cappie and the two of them still hadn't seen much of each other. They came in contact at a few Greek events on campus but nothing more than 'hi' and 'bye' were exchanged between the two.

Casey was finally coming to terms with her new relationship (or non-relationship) with Cappie when a case of severe nausea caused her to go running for the bathroom on Wednesday morning. She really didn't think too much of it at that instance. Maybe she had caught a bug somewhere? Later that day she felt completely fine so it must have been a onetime thing.

But then the same bout of morning nausea and vomiting followed her Thursday morning. When the same exact event happened on Friday morning she began to worry. After vomiting her entire breakfast she ran into her bedroom and pulled out a calendar. She and Cappie had sex January 15th. She was supposed to start her period January 28th or 29th. Today was February 5th.

All of Casey's muscles lost their strength as she collapsed onto her bed. No. This is not happening. There has to be some sort of mistake. Maybe all the stress she has been having about the Cappie situation has caused her to miss her period? And the nausea? Maybe that's just a coincidence? Maybe she really does have a cold or flu or something. Isn't January flu season?

"Case, do you know where the ritual handbook is?" asked Ashleigh as she came into their room. "I can't find it anywhere."

Ashleigh saw the horrified look Casey had on her face.

"Oh my gosh, what's wrong?" she asked sitting on the bed next to Casey.

Casey sat there completely speechless. Ashleigh took the calendar out of Casey's hands. She saw a heart around January 15th, the night her and Cappie had sex. Ashleigh was about to scold Casey for revisiting that night again. She thought Casey was doing really well this past week getting over Cappie. But then she read "start period" on the 28th of January. Taking a second to put two and two together Ashleigh gasped.

"Case, um," Ashleigh stuttered not knowing what to say.

Just then more nausea hit Casey as she stood up and ran as fast as she could to the bathroom. Ashleigh followed her locking the door behind them. She held Casey's hair back as she tried to look away at the site of her best friend throwing up into the toilet. Ten minutes and several dry heaves later Casey sat on the bathroom floor and leaned against the stall. Ashleigh joined her on the floor, even though she was completely grossed out. She could tell her friend really needed her right now. The two sat in silence for a bit staring at each other. Casey began to have tears fall from her eyes.

"This is not happening Ash," she said sniffling. "Please tell me I'm having a nightmare and wake me up right now."

Ashleigh sighed.

"Sorry Case," she said. "This is real. You're not sleeping."

Casey softly hit the back of her head against the stall wall several times.

"Ash what am I going to do?"

Ashleigh stared at her best friend who once again had the most horrified look on her face. Ashleigh assumed she probably had a similar look on her face.

"Hey! I need to use the bathroom!" they heard someone yell from outside the door.

"Private meeting!" yelled Ashleigh back. "Use the one downstairs."

She heard one of her sisters grunt loudly as she turned around and headed for the downstairs bathroom.

"Alright," said Ashleigh trying to be as calm as she possibly could. "Let's not get too ahead of ourselves. We don't know anything for sure until you take a test."

Casey nodded.

"I know," she replied.

"So let's run to the store and grab one,"

"Or five," Casey interrupted. "Just to be sure."

"Yeah, OK," replied Ashleigh standing up off of the floor.

She reached down to grab Casey's hand to pull her up. Once standing Casey collapsed against Ashleigh and began sobbing on her shoulder. Ashleigh wrapped her arms around her best friend and rubbed her back.

"It's going to be OK," she said softly. "We'll get through this together. I promise."

Casey backed away from Ashleigh wiping the tears from her face.

"Thanks Ash."

* * *

Casey was in no condition to drive so they got into Ashleigh's car and headed to the store.

"Let's go to the Kroger's on the other side of town," said Casey as Ashleigh started to drive. "Less of a chance to be noticed buying the test."

"Good idea," Ashleigh replied.

The two girls slowly walked into the store delaying the inevitable as many seconds longer as they could. They made their way to the pregnancy test aisle and began looking at all of them.

"Isn't there that one commercial that says they are 99.9% accurate?" asked Ashleigh.

"Yeah," replied Casey pleased with her friend's excellent idea.

She found the box and put it in the basket.

"Hmmm," said Casey examining the rest of the tests. "I guess I should also get the digital one that actually reads 'pregnant' or 'not pregnant'.

"Good idea," Ashleigh replied.

The girls found four other brands and took their basket of pregnancy tests up to the self check-out trying to be as conspicuous as possible. Casey paid while Ashleigh stood guard from any prying eyes. They grabbed the bags and made a mad dash back to the car.

"Alright, that's done," Casey breathed a sigh of relief as she shut the car door.

"So…..," said Ashleigh. "Where do you want to take the tests?"

Casey thought about it for a second.

"Well certainly not at the house," she replied. "There are too many nosey people there."

"I know," said Ashleigh. "Let's go get a hotel room. Totally out of the way and private."

"Ash, I just spent over fifty dollars on pregnancy tests. I don't really have the money to pay for a hotel room."

"Well I still have Mr. Credit Plus," replied Ashleigh.

"I thought you cut that up and got rid of it!" scolded Casey.

"I couldn't part with it Case. Mr. Credit Plus and I have a lot of history. I just keep him around for emergencies. And I think this certainly counts as an emergency."

"I can't ask you to…."

"No ifs, ands, or buts," interrupted Ashleigh. "We're going to the Comfort Inn. Pronto."

Ashleigh steered the car in the direction of the hotel. Casey thought about protesting Ashleigh more but the thought of taking these tests in the privacy of a hotel room was very appealing.

After arguing several minutes with the front clerk the girls were able to check into a room. Check-in really wasn't supposed to be until after 3 pm. It was 10:30 am. Ashleigh used her flirtatious charm with the clerk and he eventually gave in.

Once in the room Casey poured all of the tests out onto one of the double beds.

"Damn, I hope you have to pee," Ashleigh said with a little laugh.

"Oddly enough I do," Casey replied.

She grabbed the tests and went into the bathroom.

"Good luck!" Ashleigh called as she shut the door.

A few minutes later Casey walked out and sat on the edge of the bed.

"Well?" asked Ashleigh

"I don't know yet," Casey replied. "I left them on the sink. They all say they take 3 to 5 minutes to process."

Ashleigh sat next to Casey on the bed as the two girls sat silently for the next few minutes.

"I think they're done," Ashleigh finally said. "It's been five minutes."

Casey's heart began to beat uncontrollably. She felt like she was going to pass out. She slowly got up and walked into the bathroom. She began to read the faithful tests lined up on the sink. 'Pregnant', two blue lines, two blue lines, 'Congratulations', plus sign, two pink lines. Every single one of them was positive. Casey walked back out of the bathroom and sank back onto the bed next to Ashleigh.

"They….," she gulped. "They are all positive."

Tears started to run down Casey's face as Ashleigh's heart plummeted to the ground. All she could do was wrap her arms around her friend and cry with her.

* * *

_OK so I was only going to post chapter 3 tonight but realized that chapter wasn't exciting enough so went ahead and posted chapter 4 for you guys too. Please review! The more reviews I get the quicker I'll post more chapters! Thanks for reading!_


	5. Misery

MISERY

The next week was one of the worst weeks Casey had ever experienced. She was getting sick daily and not just in the morning, sometimes it was all day. She missed several classes this week because she didn't want to stray far from the toilet. Her breasts were beginning to hurt with her only relief being a sports bra she found in the bottom of her drawer.

Ashleigh was an amazing help to her. She even missed a few classes just to stay home and take care of Casey. She was constantly making sure Casey was drinking fluids and had everything she needed at all times. Casey didn't know what on earth she would have done if Ashleigh hadn't been so supportive.

But in the grand scheme of things Casey had no idea where to go from here. Avoiding Cappie wasn't hard since he was avoiding her as much as she was him. She finally broke down and decided to make a doctor's appointment. She was scheduled to go at 3:30 this afternoon at the Women's clinic in town. It was the only place she found where she didn't have to provide her health insurance to get care. Being a student she was still on her parents' health insurance and getting a bill from an OB/GYN in the mail was probably not the best way to break the news to them. If she was even going to tell them about it. As much as Casey cringed at the thought of abortion she had not completely ruled it out. All she had to do was get rid of it and the only people who would know her secret was Ashleigh and herself. No one else would have to know. Casey lifted up her shirt and rubbed her stomach for the first time. She let out a sigh of relief at the fact that it was still flat. Sure the baby was only about 3 millimeters long at this point but she just wanted to make sure. She let out a small smile thinking about the 3 millimeter being inside of her. She had found a few websites online that gave the week by week development of the baby when she and Ashleigh were doing research on doctors and options for Casey at this point. She found the pregnancy timeline somewhat confusing. Even though she and Cappie had sex 4 weeks ago she was considered 6 weeks pregnant because it is based on when she had her last period.

Casey was shaken out of her thoughts when she heard a knock at the door.

"Come in," she said as she pushed her shirt back down to cover her stomach.

"Hey sis," said Rusty as he entered the room. "I figured I would stop by since I haven't seen you in a while."

Casey nervously looked around the room hoping she had put away the couple of pregnancy magazines Ashleigh had bought her. Rusty's a smart kid. He would surely put two and two together if he had seen one of those.

Rusty looked at his sister sitting on her bed. She looked like hell. The Casey he knew always looked presentable and was very conscious about her looks. But Casey was pale. Her hair was loosely pulled back in a ponytail and she was wearing a tank top and a pair of old sweatpants. Rusty could tell something was wrong. He walked over and sat on the edge of Casey's bed.

"Are you feeling OK?" he asked.

"Yeah," Casey said avoiding all eye contact with Rusty. "I think I just have the flu or something."

Rusty reached his hand over to touch Casey's forehead.

"Well you don't have a fever," he said taking his hand away.

"Thanks mom," Casey said sarcastically.

The two sat in silence for a few seconds.

"So," Casey began. "Have you found out the results of the research grant yet?"

"No, not yet," Rusty replied. "The judges said most likely next week sometime."

"How are things going with Dale?" Casey asked remembering how upset Rusty was over break about his friendship with Dale.

"Things have gotten better," Rusty replied. "We're at least talking now."

"That's good," said Casey nodding her head. She could feel a little bit of nausea coming up but swallowed as hard as she could so she didn't have to run out of the room with Rusty there.

Just then Casey's phone vibrated. She picked it up seeing it was a text message from Ashleigh.

_Sorry Case, emergency Greek president meeting today at four. I won't be able to go to the doctor with you. Sorry!_

Casey sighed as she slammed her phone shut and set it back on the nightstand.

"Everything OK?" Rusty asked.

"Um, how's Cappie?" Casey asked trying to change the subject quickly. But she quickly realized that talking about Cappie probably wasn't going to help her situation at the moment.

It was Rusty's turn to sigh.

"He's doing OK I guess," Rusty replied. "I mean he's going out more and spending more time out of his room if that's what you call better."

Casey looked at him quizzically.

"He's just not himself anymore Case," continued Rusty. "Ever since you two, uh, you know, he's kind of lost his fun-loving, humorous spark."

"That's strange," replied Casey. "There really shouldn't be any reason. He's the one who rejected me and ran out of here afterwards."

"I don't know," Rusty replied looking at the ground. "He's just….."

Something caught Rusty's eye on the floor.

"He's just what?" asked Casey

Rusty ignored her as he leaned down to pick up a magazine that was halfway tucked under the bed. _Pregnancy and You. _He turned to Casey as it was his turn to look at her quizzically.

"School project," said Casey snatching the magazine out of his hand.

Rusty glared at her, slowly putting together the magazine and Casey's "flu bug" without a fever.

"Oh my god," Rusty said softly staring at his sister.

Casey stared back at him not knowing what to say.

"You're," Rusty gulped. "Pregnant?"

Tears began to once again form in Casey's eyes. She had no control of her emotions and hormones at this time and she hated it. She didn't even have any energy to lie to Rusty.

"Yes," she said looking at the ground and nodding her head.

"Oh my god," Rusty said again.

He paused.

"Is it Cappie's?" he continued.

Casey nodded her head yes as the tears broke free from her eyes and began running down her face. Rusty leaned forward and wrapped his arms around his sister.

"It's OK Case, It's OK," he said as he rubbed his hands up and down her back.

A minute later she backed away and wiped the tears off of her face. She looked at Rusty. She really couldn't tell what he was thinking. He just looked completely in shock.

"So what are you going to do?" Rusty finally asked.

"I'm not sure," Casey replied reaching for a tissue. "I have a doctor's appointment this at three thirty this afternoon. Ashleigh was supposed to go with me. But the text I just got was from her. She can't come now."

"I'll come with you," Rusty said without hesitation.

Casey thought about it for a second. It would be quite awkward with her brother being there talking about all the personal problems she was experiencing at the moment. But at the same time the thought of being alone frightened her even more.

"I'd love for someone to come with me if you don't mind," she replied.

Rusty put his arm around his sister.

"I don't mind at all," he said.

Rusty looked at his watch.

"I have to get to class," he said. "I will be back here around three to pick you up."

"OK, thanks," Casey replied. "Oh and Rusty."

Rusty turned to his sister as he was walking out the door.

"Not a word to anyone," she said.

"Promise," Rusty replied knowing what his sister meant. Obviously she hadn't told Cappie yet.

* * *

_**A/N: Thanks again for reading everyone! I love all of the encouraging reviews! You put a smile on my face for the day :0) And for those who want to leave rude comments.....if you are sick of reading pregnancy fics then don't read this, simple as that. Thank you.**_


	6. I Don't Know

I DON'T KNOW

Casey and Rusty sat nervously in the waiting area of the Women's Clinic. Casey was flipping through a magazine while Rusty was looking at all of the people in the waiting room. Most of them were women. He was surprised to see only one woman who appeared to have a husband or significant other with her. He made a mental note to make sure to go to every appointment with his wife when this moment came in his life.

"Casey Cartwright," a woman announced.

Casey and Rusty stood up and walked into the exam room. Rusty quickly found an empty chair in the corner of the room and sat down.

"Step on the scale please," the nurse asked.

Casey did. She was surprised see her weight had remained the same. Maybe she wasn't pregnant? She stepped off of the scale and up onto the exam table. The nurse continued to take her temperature and blood pressure. She then drew some blood.

"Alright," she said. "I'm going to run a couple of tests with this blood. Dr. Kline will be in to see you in a few minutes."

The nurse left the room as the two sat there in silence. Rusty began to look at all of the posters on the walls showing baby development. He was actually somewhat intrigued.

"Thanks again for coming with me," Casey said interrupting Rusty's stares at the posters.

"No problem," said Rusty turning to face her. "I just have one question though."

"Well I guess I owe you one answer then," Casey replied.

Rusty took a deep breath.

"When are you going to tell Cappie?" he asked.

Casey looked away and took a deep breath.

"It depends on what I decide to do Russ," she said. "If I decide not to keep it then there is no reason he has to know."

Rusty glared at her.

"You do know that baby is half his," said Rusty. "I think regardless of what you decide he has a right to know."

"Now this is why I didn't want to tell you," snapped Casey. "I knew you would jump on the team Cappie bandwagon."

"This has nothing to do with separate teams," Rusty replied. "If anything we all should be on one team. There is an innocent child involved here."

"It's not even a child yet," Casey responded coldly.

"You just keep telling yourself that Case," said Rusty who was becoming frustrated with his sister. "All I'm asking you is to put yourself in Cappie's shoes for a second. If you had a woman carrying your child wouldn't you want to know?"

Rusty could tell his rhetorical question hit Casey hard. He could see a few tears swell up in her eyes and she didn't say a word. She wouldn't even make eye contact with him. Just then Dr. Kline walked into the room.

"You must be Casey," she said shaking Casey's hand. "And you must be the lucky father," she continued reaching her hand for Rusty's.

"Actually no," Rusty replied shaking her hand. "I'm her brother. Just here for support."

"Oh, I'm sorry about that," said Dr. Kline awkwardly.

"No big deal," Rusty replied.

Dr. Kline sat in her rolling chair as she opened Casey's chart.

"Well as I'm sure you already know you're blood work did come up positive for pregnancy," she said looking at Casey.

Casey nodded her head trying to hold back the tears in her eyes. Dr. Kline could sense she was quite distraught.

"Correct me if I'm wrong," she continued. "But I sense that this was not a planned pregnancy."

"No," said Casey becoming choked up.

Dr. Kline handed Casey a tissue so she could wipe her eyes.

"Casey pregnancy is a beautiful thing," said Dr. Kline. "I know you're probably very nervous and scared right now. But from the looks of it you do have support." She glanced over at Rusty. "I couldn't tell you the number of women I have who come here alone and even more frightened than you."

"I know," Casey responded.

"I'm sorry I have to ask this," said Dr. Kline. "But is this pregnancy due to a rape? I have to report any abuse to the proper authorities."

"Oh, no, no," Casey responded quickly. "I know who the father is."

"And does the father know?" asked Dr. Kline.

"No," Casey replied looking down at the ground.

"I was just trying to convince her to tell him before you walked in doctor," piped in Rusty. "He's one of my best friends and I think he should have every right to know."

"Morally you are right Rusty," said Dr. Kline. "But in the eyes of the law the decision to have or not have the baby is ultimately up to the mother."

Rusty sank into the chair. He was hoping the doctor would side with him.

"But I would encourage you to tell the father since you do know who it is," the doctor continued looking at Casey. "He may be more support for you and someone to help you make this important decision. Next to you, no one is more involved than him."

Casey nodded her head once again at the doctor not knowing what to say.

"Anyway," Dr. Kline stated going back to Casey's chart. "Based on your hormone levels I would estimate you at about 6 weeks along."

"Yeah, that sounds about right," Casey responded again wiping the tears out of her eyes.

"Being so early in the pregnancy I'm not going to do an ultrasound today," said Dr. Kline. "I can see your still weighing your options at this point anyway."

Casey nodded her head. Dr. Kline reached into her drawer and pulled out several brochures.

"Here are a few brochures on abortion, adoption and deciding to keep the baby," she said handing them to Casey. "I would like to see you back here in six weeks. At that time we will do the first ultrasound. I will encourage you to think long and hard about this decision and include the father. We won't do anything until that ultrasound but if you have any questions at all don't hesitate to call the clinic. We are here to support you through this difficult time as best as we can."

"Thank you very much doctor," said Casey with a half smile.

"Anytime," Dr. Kline replied standing up and shaking Casey's and Rusty's hands once again. "I will see you soon."

Casey and Rusty looked at each other as they got up and followed Dr. Kline out of the room. Casey went to the front desk and scheduled her next appointment for March 23rd. She immediately sighed as she wasn't quite sure how she would be able to get through these next six weeks.


	7. The Walk

THE WALK

Three weeks had passed very slowly. Casey's morning sickness was lessening and she was certainly excited about that. Her breasts were still very tender and her face was starting to break out all over the place. At least by this time she felt well enough to put some make-up on to try and hide her now poor complexion.

Casey read through all the brochures Dr. Kline had given her and did some more research herself online about the different options she had. She learned that she only had until week fifteen to consider abortion which was only a few weeks after her next scheduled appointment. At this time abortion seemed like the best option for her. She was graduating in a few months. How could she start her career several months pregnant only to leave the job for maternity leave after starting? Who would even hire her at 5 or 6 months pregnant? As much as she didn't agree with abortion it was her top option. She did consider adoption but quickly ruled that out. It's one thing to terminate the pregnancy but how could she give up her child and possibly tell them at a later date that she just didn't want him? That thought was much harder to choke down than the abortion option.

No, she hasn't told Cappie yet. She honestly hasn't even seen him for the past two weeks. She knew he was doing well with regular updates from Rusty. But at the same time Rusty and Ashleigh were on her case daily, no _hourly_, to tell Cappie about the baby. She thought about it all of the time. She played in her head the different reactions he would have and how she would react to each one of them. It was the bad reactions he could have that made her the most terrified of telling him. Cappie has never been a mean person but she honestly didn't know how he would react to something this serious in his life.

Later that night Casey was resting in her bed. She had a pounding headache was feeling quite bloated which she read from her pregnancy outline that it was because of the increased blood volume with pregnancy. Just then Rusty and Ashleigh came bursting into the room.

"Alright, you've had three weeks since your appointment," said Rusty slamming the door. "We have waited patiently for three weeks and you still haven't told him yet."

Casey sat up in bed surprised at how angry Rusty appeared to be.

"He's right Case," Ashleigh chimed in. "Cappie needs to know. You need to tell him."

"Will you guys just let me do this on my own terms?" Casey snapped

"No!" Rusty yelled. "I can't sit here and watch my best friend go on through life not knowing about his own child. This is ridiculous. There is no reason why you shouldn't tell him."

"Actually," said Casey. "I think I've decided to have an abortion. So as far as I'm concerned the only people who are ever going to know are the three of us."

"Casey you can't do this," wined Ashleigh. "You can't make this decision without talking to him."

"I have all rights to do whatever I want," Casey argued back.

"Fine then," said Rusty walking towards the door. "I'm going to go and tell him myself."

"Oh no you're not!" Casey yelled standing up and going over to Rusty. "This is not your decision."

"Cappie is my best friend," Rusty stated turning to face Casey. "If you can't man up and do what you have to do then I'll tell him."

Casey began to cry. She couldn't believe the two people who have been the most supportive to her were ganging up on her.

"Casey just go tell him," said Ashleigh. "You'll feel better once you do."

Casey glared at Ashleigh.

"Neither of you have any idea what I am going through!" she yelled, tears still streaming down her eyes. "How am I going to tell Cappie that I just ruined his life?"

"You haven't ruined his life," said Ashleigh sympathetically.

"Well I've certainly ruined mine," Casey replied grabbing her coat and running out the door. She needed to get as far away as possible from her brother and her best friend.

Ashleigh looked at Rusty as the door slammed.

"Go," said Rusty. "Call me once you know something."

Ashleigh nodded in agreement with Rusty as she slipped out of the door and quietly followed behind Casey hoping their plan would work.

* * *

Casey walked out of the ZBZ house as she put her coat on. She reached into her pocket and realized she didn't have her car keys. Since she didn't dare return to her room she began to walk around campus. The walk began to calm her a little bit. She then noticed she was beginning to walk off of campus. She found herself going down a street full of nice family houses. She looked into a few of the windows as she walked by. She saw a husband and his wife cuddling on the couch watching a movie. In another home she found two children with their parents around the dining room table playing a board game. Seeing these sites began to make her more upset than she already was. She pictured the couple watching the movie was her and Cappie. The thought made her smile on the inside. She then thought about the couple with children. She rubbed her stomach slightly thinking about her own child and how she couldn't possibly give him or her those kind of moments in life. The thought made tears begin to flow once again down her face. She began to fatigue from all of the walking. She noticed she was walking by a small park and found a bench to sit down on. Her head was not only pounding from her headache but also spinning with all of the mess currently in her life. She never realized how someone so small could cause so much drama.

Ashleigh finally reached where Casey was after dodging through several parked cars so she couldn't be seen. She knelt down next to one of the cars and pulled out her cell phone.

"OK Rusty, she's at the park off of Key Street. She's sitting on one of the benches."

"Perfect," replied Rusty. "I'll make the call."

Rusty hung up with Ashleigh and found Cappie's number in his phone.

"Hello?" asked Cappie as he answered the phone.

"Cap," said Rusty in his most out of breath voice he could. "I'm in trouble, I need your help."

"Russ what's wrong?" asked Cappie sounding very worried.

"I, I, I was just chased down by a couple of Omega Chis," Rusty continued. "I'm at the park off of Key Street. Can you come and get me?"

"Russ my car is in the shop," replied Cappie.

"Come on Cap, it's not that far," pleaded Rusty. "I'm afraid if I go back to campus on my own they'll get me again."

Cappie let out a chuckle.

"You're such a baby sometimes Spitter," he said.

"So you're coming?" Rusty asked.

"Yeah, I'll be there in a few minutes," Cappie replied.

"Thanks man," said Rusty hanging up the phone.

He quickly called Ashleigh back.

"It's a go," was all he said as he hung the phone back up hoping their plan would work as planned.

* * *

_**A/N: Thanks yet again for all the WONDERFUL reviews. You guys are awesome! And I'm sorry to leave you in a little bit of suspense but I promise you won't be disappointed with chapter 8! It will probably be up later this weekend sometime :0)**_


	8. Strong Enough to Break

STRONG ENOUGH TO BREAK

Cappie wasn't running because he knew that Rusty wasn't in immediate danger. But he was walking quickly. He didn't know why Rusty had such an effect on him. Sure he was his big brother but deep down he knew his love for Rusty had a lot to do with his sister Casey. Thinking of her made him smile a little but it quickly turned into a frown. He hadn't really spoken to her since the night they had sex. He felt bad for avoiding her but at the same time he knew it was the best for him. His heart was already wounded beyond repair when it came to Casey Cartwright.

He arrived at the park and searched around for Rusty. He didn't see him. Cappie was just about to turn around and head back thinking Rusty became tired of waiting for him when he heard a female crying. He scanned the area once again seeing the crying girl sitting on a bench in the middle of the park. Cappie's friendly instincts kicked in and started to walk towards the crying girl.

"Are you OK?" he asked approaching her.

Cappie froze in his steps as the girl looked up at him. It was Casey. He took his hand and ran it through his hair as he continued to stare at her.

"Cap what are you doing here?" Casey asked wiping the tears off of her face.

Cappie walked over and sat next to her.

"I got a call from Rusty," he said. "He told me to meet him here."

"UGH! I could punch that kid!" said Casey as she buried her head in her hands.

"Wait, am I missing something here?" Cappie asked.

Casey turned to look at Cappie. She began to hyperventilate. She did this partly because she was angry as hell at her brother but partly because she knew that this was it. If she didn't tell Cappie now she probably was never going to get the nerve to do it. She looked into his soft blue eyes. They were staring at her intently waiting for her to answer his question. She attempted to take a deep breath.

"Rusty and Ashleigh made me upset and I came here to get away from them. I'm assuming he called you so you could come out here and rescue me or something," she finally replied.

Cappie could sense the frustration in her voice.

"Look if you don't need to be rescued then I can just go," he said standing up.

"No, it's OK," said Casey grabbing his hand and pulling him back down next to her. "I could use a friend right now, even if we haven't been much of friends lately."

"Case, about that," Cappie began.

"Don't," Casey interrupted. "I've been crying enough lately and you actually telling me you don't want to be friends with me anymore is just going to make it worse."

Cappie shook his head.

"That's not what I was going to say," he said. "I'll always be here for you as a friend."

Casey couldn't help but roll her eyes and look away.

"Look," Cappie continued. "Rusty told me you've been sick. I'm sorry I wasn't there for you as a friend. I just needed some time to figure things out."

"What did you need to figure out?" asked Casey. "About how much of a mistake you made calling me that night in January?"

"No, that wasn't the mistake," Cappie responded. "I needed a friend and you were there for me. The mistake was what we did later that night. It never should have happened."

Casey could feel the tears start to build up on her eyes yet again. It was so much more of a mistake than he already knew. Cappie looked at her and saw the tears in her eyes. He knew he needed to say something.

"I mean, it wasn't necessarily a mistake," he corrected himself. "It was probably something beautiful. Honestly, I don't even remember it I was so drunk. I just wish it didn't happen under those circumstances. If it was something sober and mutual between the two of us, things would have been different."

"You told me you loved me that night," Casey blurted out. She didn't care anymore. She was about to tell Cappie he was a father. She might as well get everything out now.

Cappie sat there dumbfounded. "I did?" he asked.

Casey nodded.

They each sat there staring down at their hands, avoiding eye contact.

"So why have you been crying?" Cappie finally asked.

Casey didn't respond.

"Because of me?" Cappie asked with uncertainty in his voice.

"Um, sort of," Casey finally replied.

Cappie sat up and turned towards Casey. She did the same but continued to avoid eye contact with him.

"Are you going to elaborate?" Cappie finally asked.

Casey took a deep breath. "Confusion at first," she began. "It was really hard for me to hear someone tell me they love me and then avoid me like the plague for the next several weeks. And then of course you have our Dobler's incident where you made it very clear you still didn't want anything to do with me. How could I not feel used after that?"

Cappie instantly felt really bad. He really had no idea he had told Casey that he loved her that night. She's always had a place in his heart but he was even surprised himself he had said that to her.

"I completely understand how you feel," Cappie finally responded. "I felt the exact same way when you left me rush night last year."

"But I still talked to you afterwards," said Casey. "I didn't go out of my way and avoid you at all costs."

"I was hurt Case," said Cappie. "We both know deep down we don't belong together. I'm the un-ambitious frat guy and you're the focused, driven sorority girl. That's why we didn't work out the first time. Nothing's changed. It would be the exact same ending."

"I was hurt too Cap," said Casey finally turning to meet eyes with Cappie. "I could deal with you rejecting me again. I understand we can't be together as a romantic couple. But the fact that I couldn't even come and talk to you as a friend is what hurt me the most. I can't lose you as a friend Cap."

Tears started to run down Casey's face as she said that last line. Cappie reached his hand up to wipe them off of her cheek.

"Don't cry please," he said. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have avoided you. That was my fault. I'm here now as your friend. I will always be your friend."

Casey smiled slightly as she leaned in and gave Cappie a hug. He wrapped his arms around her tightly. His embrace actually made Casey cry more. She knew she needed Cappie more than a friend at this point. She still hadn't completed the ultimate task of telling him about the baby. Cappie pulled away and looked at Casey.

"Hey," he said softly. "No more crying. Everything is going to be fine. Let's forget that night even happened. Let's start all over and erase the past few weeks."

Now Casey began to sob. Cappie took his hand and lifted her chin to look at him. He looked at her confused.

"Is there something else wrong?" he finally asked.

Casey began to hyperventilate once again. A bout of nausea suddenly hit her. It was like the baby was trying to tell her to just tell Cappie already. _Mom, just tell my father_.

"I, um, we, we can't just forget about that night," Casey eventually uttered out of her mouth.

Cappie returned his hand down to his lap as he continued to look at her confused as ever.

"God, I can't do this," said Casey standing up and starting to walk away.

"Wait, whoa, do what?" asked Cappie as he jumped up and went after her.

Casey froze. She wanted to collapse right then and there. She wanted to vomit right then and there. She closed her eyes as tight as she could hoping when she opened them she wouldn't be standing there in the park with Cappie. She hoped she would be in her bed and this was all a nightmare. She opened her eyes to find Cappie now standing right in front of her. His eyes were fixed on hers with a piercing stare, pleading her to tell him whatever was on her mind. More tears came spilling out of her eyes as she looked at the ground. Was she ever going to stop crying? Didn't tears eventually run out?

"Please, tell me whatever you need to tell me," said Cappie becoming somewhat choked up himself during this very tense moment.

Casey looked up and stared right into Cappie's eyes.

"I'm, I'm, I'm pregnant," she finally muscled out.

Casey wanted to see Cappie's reaction. But with the words she just uttered she felt all strength rush out of her legs and she collapsed to her knees on the ground, sobbing uncontrollably. For several minutes all she could see were Cappie's jeans still standing in front of her through her tears. Suddenly she felt his warm embrace around her again. He had knelt down in front of her and took her into his arms. She returned the embrace knowing that he probably needed it as much as she did now. She heard him softly sniffling in her ear as his head was buried in her shoulder. She squeezed him tighter as he did the same to her.

Cappie finally backed away and sat down on the ground wiping the tears out of his eyes.

"I'm, I'm the father?" Cappie finally asked even though he already knew the answer.

Casey nodded her head yes as she also sat on the grass.

Cappie let what Casey just said soak in for a minute staring up at the sky. He was first surprised that he wasn't mad. There was something about the situation that anger just didn't seem appropriate for. He tried to assess to see if he was possibly happy. But in the end the only emotion he knew for sure he was feeling was shock. He had been thinking about his future a lot lately but not one of his plans included having a child. Hell, none of his plans included Casey either. He looked down at her. She finally stopped sobbing. She now just had small tears occasionally running down her face. He knew he needed to say something.

"Have you been to the doctor?" he finally asked.

"Yes," she nodded her head. "Blood tests confirmed the six positive pregnancy tests I took several days before. I have another appointment March 23rd."

"So you're keeping the baby?" Cappie asked.

"Well what do you think we should do?" asked Casey who wanted to see what Cappie was thinking before she mentioned her plans.

"I don't think it matters much what I think," replied Cappie. "It's your body. You're the mother."

"But you're the father," Casey stated matter-of-factly. "I think you should be a part of this decision."

"God Case, I don't know," Cappie replied. "You can't just tell me something like this and expect me ten minutes later to know what to do."

"I know," Casey responded. "I've known for seven weeks now and still am going back and forth about the options."

Cappie nervously licked his lips. "Why did it take you so long to tell me Case?" he asked.

"I was scared," Casey replied. "This is something that affects the rest of your life. I was honestly considering just having an abortion and not even telling you. That way your life wouldn't be ruined."

"Case my life would be ruined if I found out years from now that you terminated my child without telling me. How could you even think that I wouldn't want to know?"

"Because you don't think about the future Cap," Casey replied.

"Wow, a child Case. Did you think I wouldn't step up? Because you obviously don't know me very well if you think friends and family mean nothing to me."

"That's not what I meant Cap," said Casey. "I actually pictured you as a great father. You're so compassionate and have so much love to give."

"Then let's keep the baby," Cappie replied.

"No, we can't make this decision tonight," said Casey sternly. "Over the next three weeks we have to weigh the pros and cons about what kind of future we can provide for our baby."

Cappie's heart fluttered just a bit with Casey's last words: _our baby_. Never in a million years did he think those words would come out of her mouth.

"Well if it's any conciliation my initial reaction is the keep the baby. I guess this may change with discussions in the future but right now my gut is telling us to keep it," said Cappie.

"My gut is telling me it's hungry," said Casey with a chuckle trying to lighten the mood a bit.

"That's my boy," said Cappie with a small smile.

Casey glared at him.

"Or girl," he quickly added.

Cappie stood up and reached down for Casey's hand. He pulled her up to a stand and rested his hands around her waist.

"No more secrets OK?" he asked staring into her eyes

"OK," Casey replied nodding her head yes.

Cappie wrapped his arms around her and squeezed her tightly.

"Everything's going to be OK," he said softly into her ear.

Casey could feel some relief from the stress she had been feeling. Sure both Rusty and Ashleigh had said the exact same words to her. But hearing them come from Cappie's mouth was different. She actually believed him. She knew he wasn't saying those words just to make her feel better. She could tell he truly believed them.

Cappie gave her a soft but friendly kiss on the cheek as he let go of her.

"Let's go get you and Cappie Jr. some food," he said putting his arm around her shoulder.

"Cappie Jr?" Casey asked with a smirk

Cappie just looked at her and smiled.

"I can dream right?" he replied.

The two of them walked arm and arm to a small diner just off campus. Casey was pleased how the conversation went. Sure no monumental decisions were made tonight but at least Cappie finally knew. She was not alone to make this decision by herself now. She had help and that was the single most wonderful news she had heard in the past seven weeks. Plus she could tell Cappie was going to be supportive. He initially wants to keep the baby. For once she felt like things were finally looking up. Everyone else was right. Things would get better once Cappie knew he was going to be a father. For the first time she actually felt like things were going to be OK.

* * *

**_A/N: Well there it is. The longest chapter yet. Cappie finally knows! Let me know what you guys think. I hope you liked it! Lots more exciting things to come in the next chapters._**


	9. Great Divide

GREAT DIVIDE

It has been around two weeks since Casey told Cappie about the baby. The two of them spent time together almost daily since their conversation. They decided to not tell anyone else about the pregnancy at this time since they weren't sure what they were going to do yet. Casey has focused the past two weeks catching Cappie up on the facts she already knows. She gave him the brochures Dr. Kline had given her and some of the websites with good information she found online. She was really caught off guard with how supportive and into the pregnancy Cappie really was. She had given him the brochures the Monday after she told him about the baby and by Wednesday he was ready to go over all of them with her. He even took it upon himself to actually go to the library and check out a book on pregnancy. But he had put it under Casey's name of course. With less than a week until Casey's next appointment the two of them decided it was time to make a decision about the baby.

Casey wasn't showing yet but she could certainly tell she had gained a few pounds. So she put on her biggest hooded sweatshirt and headed to the Kappa Tau house. She always liked going over to the Kappa Tau house. All of Cappie's brothers loved her and were as nice as could be. She felt like his house in his room was the safest place to have this conversation. There was almost always someone listening at the ZBZ house.

She arrived at the KT house debating whether she should knock or just walk in. She chose the latter of the two and walked into the house. She found Beaver with some of the other brothers playing video games in the living room.

"Casey," said Beaver. "What are you doing here?"

"I was looking for Cappie," she replied. "I wanted to talk with him about a possible ZBZ/KT mixer."

Casey grinned. She was glad she came up with that excuse before she walked into the house just in case she was put into this exact position.

"Sweet," Beaver replied. "He should be up in his room."

"Thanks," Casey replied as she ascended the stairs.

Being back at the Kappa Tau house was sort of bitter sweet for Casey. Even though she felt like she belonged here, the last time she was here she told Cappie she still had feelings for him and he rejected her at the End of the World party.

"_My how things have changed_," she thought to herself as she arrived at Cappie's door.

She softly knocked.

"Who is it?" Cappie asked from inside.

"Casey," she replied wondering if he was really expecting anyone else.

"Come on in," he yelled from inside.

Casey walked in to see Cappie lying on his bed intently reading the pregnancy book he had gotten from the library.

"Sorry," said Cappie as she shut the door. "I just didn't want Beaver walking in while I was reading this."

He smiled. Casey returned it with a warm smile herself.

"So what are you reading about?" she asked as she took a seat in the recliner chair next to his bed.

"Birth," Cappie replied. "And I know it's supposed to be a beautiful experience and everything but this book is just a little more graphic than I would like it to be. I'll be more than glad to stand up by your head and let you squeeze my hand but there better be a sheet or something covering down below because I may just pass out if what they say in this book is true."

"Cappie!" said Casey playfully hitting him on the arm.

"Alright, alright, I'll look," he replied. "But only after the baby's halfway out."

Casey rolled her eyes.

"Cap, we don't even know if we're going to get to that part," she said. "We'll cross that bridge if and when it comes."

"OK," said Cappie shutting the book and sitting up on the edge of the bed to face Casey.

The two sat there in awkward silence for a moment.

"Um, where should we start?" Casey asked.

"I don't know," Cappie replied shrugging his shoulders.

"I know," said Casey. "Let's start by writing down some pros and cons. Do you have a notebook and a pen I can use?"

Cappie went over to his desk grabbing what Casey asked for and handed it to her.

"So should we start with the pros or the cons?" he asked as he sat back down on the bed.

"Doesn't matter," said Casey dividing the paper into two columns. "Let's just say whatever is on the tops of our heads."

"OK, well," said Cappie instantly becoming a little nervous. "I guess a pro would be to have a son or daughter who we can watch grow up and teach him or her all that we know."

Casey wrote that in the pro column.

"For me a con would be having to find a job out of school while I'm like 4 or 5 months pregnant," said Casey.

"Why would that be a con?" asked Cappie confused.

"Come on Cap, as a boss would you hire someone knowing they would only be able to work for you for a few months and then have to be on maternity leave?" Casey asked.

"Who said you had to get a job?" asked Cappie. "I could support you and the baby."

"That's sweet Cap," Casey replied. "But we're not even sure if you're going to be able to graduate at the end of this semester."

Cappie smiled.

"What?" asked Casey who also got a goofy grin on her face.

"I met with my advisor yesterday," Cappie replied. "I was surprised I even had one. Anyway, as long as I am able to pick up a finance class I'll be walking down that aisle with you. Graduation aisle that is," Cappie added correcting himself.

"Wow, really?" asked Casey.

"Yeah," Cappie replied as he exchanged a long glance with Casey. He could tell she was really proud of him.

"Well I think job hunting is still going to be a con," said Casey breaking her stare from Cappie's eyes and adding it to the list.

"I guess you should add finances as another con then," said Cappie with a deep breath. "It's expensive to raise a child according to this book."

Casey added that to the list.

"Loss of time would be another con," Casey said adding it to the list. "We probably won't be able to hang out with our friends as much."

Cappie nodded his head in agreement.

"And then there is the issue of our parents," Casey continued as she added that to the con list. "We'll have to tell them if we decide to keep the baby."

Cappie looked at Casey and sighed.

"We're sure coming up with a lot of cons and hardly any pros," he said.

"Yeah," Casey replied racking her brain for some positives to put on the list.

"What about love?" Cappie finally asked.

Casey gave him a confused look.

"You know that no one else in this world would love that baby more than we would. I believe only we can give it the love it deserves," Cappie continued.

"I thought we decided against adoption," stated Casey.

"We did," Cappie replied. "But by terminating the baby it will never ever get the chance to be loved."

"Alright," said Casey adding 'love' to the list of positives and kind of taken back with how sappy Cappie was getting on her.

The two sat in silence again for a bit.

"Well I don't know how you feel about this but I think a con is definitely going to be raising our child in two separate homes," Casey finally stated.

"What do you mean by that?" Cappie asked almost in an angry tone.

"Think about it Cap," Casey replied. "Neither of us is sure where we are going to be after graduation. You could get a job in Arizona while I get a job in New York. Or even if we both stay here in Ohio, we would have to set up visitation times and all that crap."

"Who said we weren't on this journey together?" Cappie asked. "Why does everything have to be separate? Why can't we live together and raise our child?"

Casey could tell Cappie was hurt by her last assumption. She was glad she brought it up though. It was something that needed to be talked about.

"Sorry Cap," she replied. "I didn't know you were thinking like that."

"Well how in the hell else am I supposed to think?" he asked. "From the moment you told me you were pregnant I assumed we were on this road together. That we were going to raise the baby together. Sounds to me like we weren't on the same page."

"That's the point of having this discussion though," Casey replied. "So we could talk about these issues and see if it's even possible for the two of us to be on the same page."

Cappie looked down at the ground. He was beginning the think it wasn't possible for the two of them to be on the same page.

"You know what, this is silly," stated Casey as she took the list of pros and cons and ripped it up. "No list is going to tell us the answer. This is something we just have to agree on together."

"So…..honestly," began Cappie. "What do you want to do?"

He looked right at Casey who was nervously winding her blond hair around her finger.

"Well if it's OK with you I want to completely take adoption off of the table," she stated. "You're right. If we are going to have the baby no two people could love him or her like we could."

"Agreed," Cappie replied.

"And while I agree that the two of us are good enough friends to make raising the baby work," Casey continued. "I just don't feel it's the right time to be bringing him or her into the world."

"Is there ever a right time?" Cappie asked.

"Of course," Casey replied. "I always pictured having my first child with my husband after we both have established careers and have been married for two years. Having a baby with my best friend just after graduating college and out of wedlock is nowhere near what I pictured."

"I see," Cappie replied.

"Well what about you?" asked Casey "What is your right time?"

Cappie took a deep breath as he thought about Casey's question for a second.

"I can't answer that question because I have never thought about having a child," Cappie replied. "But in all honesty I think that all things happen for a reason. And if God feels that it's the right time for me to have a child then it's the right time."

"So you're sounding like you want to keep the baby then?" Casey asked.

"Now I never said that," Cappie responded. "It just seems that you're so quick to say no to having the child that my mind wants to present the other possibility, that's all."

"You're OK with terminating the pregnancy then?" Casey finally asked.

"Yeah, guess so," Cappie replied shrugging his shoulders. "There will be more appropriate times to have children in the future for the both of us right?"

"Yeah, of course," Casey said softly staring deep into Cappie's eyes. She could tell he was lying to her. She hated that she could always tell when he was lying.

"Well it's settled then," she continued as she stood up and began to walk towards the door.

"Case wait," Cappie said standing up and walking up to her.

Casey shut her eyes. She was almost home free. All she had to do was walk out the door with the decision left that the baby would be terminated and that would be the end of it. But here was Cappie, about to argue his case. He wanted to keep the baby.

"Can I come with you to your doctor's appointment?" he finally asked.

Casey opened her mouth about to argue negatives with him having to do with keeping the baby when she realized he wasn't actually talking about keeping the baby. He just wanted to come to the doctor's appointment.

"Are you sure you want to come?" Casey asked. "We're going to be talking about terminating the baby."

"Yeah but you also said they are going to do an ultrasound," Cappie replied. "I just want to see my baby. That's all."

Casey sighed. "Of course you can come," she stated. She had kept enough from Cappie during this whole ordeal. She couldn't keep him from seeing the baby even if it would be his first and only time. "It's the 23rd, at 2:30."

"I'll pick you up," Cappie stated opening the door for Casey.

She walked out and turned around to Cappie standing in the doorway. She smiled and waved to him and he smiled back as he shut the door.


	10. Pictures

PICTURES

Casey woke up the morning of the 23rd with mixed emotions. She hadn't spoken much to Cappie after their conversation in his room about the baby. He had called her on three different occasions just to verify the date and time of the appointment. Casey thought it was sweet. She could tell he just wanted to hear her voice. It was his way of making sure she was OK if he hadn't seen her for a couple of days.

"So today's the day," Casey heard Ashleigh say as she stretched in her bed.

"Yeah, it's finally here," Casey replied.

"Are you nervous?" Ashleigh asked.

"No, not really," Casey replied. "I guess if anything, I'm nervous Cappie is going to try to talk me into keeping the baby while we're there."

Casey had told Ashleigh she knew Cappie had lied to her. She knew he was only going along with the termination because she was the one who wanted it.

"Well you are sure you want to terminate it then?" Ashleigh asked sitting up in her bed. "Because you know Cappie would be all for keeping the baby if you were."

"Ash, we've gone over this a million times," Casey replied. "The timing is just not right. If this happened three or four years from now things might be different."

"So you're saying if you and Cappie had sex three years from now as friends and you got pregnant you would keep the baby?" Ashleigh asked.

"Probably," Casey replied. "Because at that time we would both have careers established, money to provide for the baby and of course breaking the news to our parents wouldn't be as bad because we would be older."

"So hypothetically," said Ashleigh. "Would you marry Cappie if this were the situation three years from now?"

Casey shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know."

"I think you do know," Ashleigh replied.

Casey looked at her confused.

"Tell me that three years from now you couldn't see Cappie and you living in a cute house in Chicago with him yelling the patent 'honey I'm home' phrase as he walked in the house after work. And having little Cappie Jr. running up to him so excited because daddy was home," Ashleigh continued.

"Yeah," Casey softly stated as she continued Ashleigh's hypothetical situation. "Then he would come up to me and wrap his arms around my waist while giving me a sweet kiss hello."

Ashleigh looked at Casey smiling ear to ear as she talked about Cappie.

"You're still in love with him," she finally stated.

Casey sighed. "Of course I'm still in love with him," she replied.

"And he still loves you," continued Ashleigh.

"Probably," Casey nodded her head in agreement. "But this conversation is pointless. We're talking about a hypothetical situation three years from now."

"I don't think this situation is as hypothetical as you think," Ashleigh blurted out.

Casey shot Ashleigh a glaring look.

"What?" Ashleigh asked. "You both love each other right now. You're pregnant right now. Who says Cappie can't put a ring on your finger and you two can't raise the baby together? I just don't see how you think this situation would be much different three years from now."

Ashleigh paused and waited for Casey to say something. But Casey didn't say anything so Ashleigh continued.

"I don't mean to throw a wrench or anything into your plans today," she continued. "But I always think of a woman terminating a pregnancy because she was raped or had a one night stand or something. Sure you and Cappie had a one night stand but you also love each other. And I think you two could love that baby now just as much as you could three years from now."

Casey continued to be silent. Ashleigh could tell what she was saying was sinking into Casey hard. Ashleigh stood up and went over to the closet. She grabbed her shower caddy and was about to open the door when Casey finally spoke.

"So I'm just supposed to change all my plans on a whim today and keep the baby because I love Cappie?" she asked.

Ashleigh opened the door and began to walk out.

"All I'm saying is to think about things one last time," she said. "I think deep down even you want to keep it."

With that Ashleigh walked out of the room shutting the door. Casey's head began to spin again like the night right before she told Cappie she was pregnant. She needed to talk to him.

"Damn," said Casey out loud as she looked at the clock. Cappie had already started his classes for the day. She wasn't going to see him until he picked her up for the appointment.

She got up out of bed and went over to sit at her desk. She pulled all of the pregnancy information she had out of the drawer to begin to review her options yet again. Ironically enough at the very bottom of the drawer she found a picture. She set the brochures and papers on her desk and pulled out the picture. It was the two of them. The picture was taken freshman year at the Kappa Tau house. Cappie had his arms wrapped around her waist from behind. Each of them was smiling as wide as they could. Casey set the picture back in the drawer as she rubbed her hand over her stomach. She felt somewhat calmed knowing that she had a little piece of him inside of her.

Casey threw all the pregnancy information back into the drawer and walked over to the closet instead. She went into the back and dug out a shoebox covered with dust. She took it back over to the bed and sat down. This wasn't a decision about the pregnancy anymore. This was more of a decision as to if she could spend the rest of her life with Cappie. The pregnancy information she read a hundred times already wasn't going to tell her that. The freshman year memories inside this box hopefully would.

* * *

**_A/N: So since I have the most AMAZING readers in the world I thought I would post two more chapters tonight! I really liked how this chapter ended for some reason and of course the next one is pretty exciting. Keep reviewing and letting me know what you think! And I'll keep posting chapters....I think I'm writing like chapter 30 right now....LoL! So I've got plenty more to post :0)_**


	11. Sure About It

SURE ABOUT IT

Casey sat on the ZBZ front porch waiting for Cappie. She had skipped all of her classes that day. After going through her memory box for an hour looking at all the pictures, movie stubs and little notes Cappie had written her she couldn't focus on school. She nervously looked down at her watch when she saw his Jeep pull up to the curb. She grabbed her purse and walked down the front path to his car.

"Hey," said Cappie as she got into the car. "How are you?"

"Nervous," Casey replied buckling her seatbelt. "How about you?"

"Um, I'm not sure exactly," Cappie replied. "If anything I think I'm a little excited."

Casey looked over and saw a small grin on Cappie's face. Seeing it helped ease her own tensions a little bit.

"So, where exactly is this place?" asked Cappie as he pulled out into the street.

"It's right downtown off of Main Street, near Rosco's Deli," Casey replied.

The two of them sat silently during the ten minute ride there. Casey wanted to tell Cappie about her morning and her trip down memory lane but she didn't feel like this was the time or the place to bring up the past. They needed to be more focused on the future right now.

Casey signed in when they got to the clinic and joined Cappie in the waiting room.

"I feel a little out of place here," Cappie whispered to her noticing he was the only male in the room.

"At least you're the father," Casey replied. "How do you think Rusty felt the last time?"

"Point taken," Cappie replied with another smile.

Casey picked up a _Mother To Be _magazine off of the table and began flipping through it as Cappie continued to take in the surroundings of the room, completely amazed that he was actually here. A few women were called back and Casey started to become more nervous. She began to nervously tap her leg up and down on the ground. Cappie leaned over and rested his hand on her knee.

"Calm down," he said softly to her. "Everything is going to be OK."

There were those words again. Casey looked right into his eyes when he said them to her and instantly got lost as they seemed to pull her in. She thought about her eyes. Cappie could probably see the desperation, anxiousness and horror in her eyes. But his eyes walked to a very different tune. In his eyes she saw hope, love and peacefulness. She wondered how he remained so calm at a time like this. If only she could feel the same.

"Casey Cartwright," Casey heard as she was jolted out of her trance.

"Oh, right here," she replied as she began to stand up noticing Cappie's hand was still on her leg.

She grabbed her purse and motioned for Cappie to follow her back into the exam room. Just like the last appointment the nurse asked her to step on the scale.

"Turn around," she told Cappie right before stepping on the scale.

He obeyed and faced the opposite wall.

"Five pounds," said the nurse. "That's pretty good."

Casey stepped off of the scale and sat up on the exam table. The nurse then took her temperature and blood pressure. Both were within the normal ranges.

"Alright," said the nurse. "Dr. Kline will be in shortly."

Cappie grabbed the rolling stool and sat next to the exam table by Casey as soon as the nurse left.

"Interesting choice of wallpaper," Cappie said a little nervously looking at all the posters on the wall.

Casey shot Cappie a glare.

"This is serious," she said. "Those pictures are what is happening inside my body right now."

"Hey, I'm Mr. Serious about this," Cappie replied. "Just trying to lighten the mood a little bit."

"I know," said Casey. "I'm sorry, just a little on edge with everything."

"Apology accepted," Cappie replied.

The two of them sat in silence for a few minutes before the doctor knocked and walked into the room.

"Hello Casey, so nice to see you again," Dr. Kline said as she walked into the room.

"You too," Casey replied shaking her hand.

Dr. Kline then looked over to Cappie.

"My, your brother sure has changed in six weeks," she said jokingly.

Casey chuckled.

"Dr. Kline this is Cappie," Casey began.

"Wait, don't tell me," Dr. Kline interrupted. "You're the father."

"That would be me," Cappie replied with a proud father smile on his face shaking the doctor's hand.

"Well I'm glad you decided to talk to him Casey," said Dr. Kline looking around for her stool. "Sounds like he's ready to be supportive."

"Yeah," Casey replied looking over at Cappie and smiling.

"I'm not sure where my stool went," said Dr. Kline until she looked over at Cappie. "There it is!"

"You know you should really have a couple of these in here," Cappie replied standing up and giving the doctor her stool back. "What if the father actually wants to sit close and see everything that is going on?"

"Well first of all," replied Dr. Kline. "We don't get a whole lot of fathers who come here. But when we do they usually pull that chair up. It works just as well."

Cappie watched Dr. Kline point to another chair next to the wall.

"Oh, good thinking," Cappie stated. "Sorry, I'm just a bit nervous."

Dr. Kline opened Casey's chart as Cappie pulled the chair right up to the exam table.

"I see your weight and vital signs look very good," said Dr. Kline. "Why don't you go ahead and lay down and we'll take a look?"

Casey laid back on the exam table and lifted up the bottom of her shirt exposing her stomach. Dr. Kline tucked a towel around Casey's jeans so the gel wouldn't get on them and started up the ultrasound machine.

"Sorry Casey, this is going to be a little cold," said Dr. Kline as she squeezed the gel onto Casey's stomach.

Casey tensed up from a combination of the cold gel and the nervousness she was feeling. Dr. Kline began typing some things into the ultrasound machine and Casey turned to look at Cappie. She met his eyes as he gave her a small reassuring smile. Just then Casey felt warmness come over her body. She looked down and saw that Cappie had taken her hand into his.

"It's going to be OK," he whispered giving her hand a squeeze.

Casey squeezed Cappie's hand tightly in return.

"Alright, let take a look at the baby," Dr. Kline finally said as she began to move the ultrasound head in the gel on Casey's stomach.

It was a few tense moments until Dr. Kline finally pointed to the screen.

"There it is," she stated. "The little bugger was hiding."

Casey and Cappie both intently stared at the ultrasound screen as Dr. Kline pointed out the baby's head, arms and legs.

"Wow," Cappie said softly. "That is amazing it already is looking like a baby."

"Of course," Dr. Kline replied. "Babies grow very quickly in the womb. They start off as just a few cells and grow into what you see in a newborn."

"Is the baby moving?" Casey asked.

"Yeah, you have a little mover on your hands," Dr. Kline replied with a chuckle as she had to move the ultrasound head around a lot to keep the baby in the picture.

"How come I don't feel anything?" Casey asked.

"The baby's too small for you to feel anything yet," Dr. Kline replied.

Casey looked over at Cappie. His eyes were wide staring at his child on the screen. The site made her smile. She squeezed his hand. He broke his stare away from the screen and looked at her.

"Isn't that just incredible Case?" he asked. "Knowing that the two of us made that little guy or girl in there?"

"Yeah, pretty incredible," Casey replied trying to fight back tears. She wasn't sure if they were tears of happiness or sadness. Whatever they were she didn't want to let them fall at this moment.

"Let's check out the heartbeat," said Dr. Kline as she flipped a switch.

"Boom, boom, boom, boom, boom, boom, boom," the baby's heartbeat filled the silence in the room.

Casey couldn't help it now. Hearing the heartbeat made the tears she was trying to fight back come streaming down her face. She sniffled causing Cappie to look up at her.

"Aw Case, don't cry," he said using his free hand to wipe some of the tears off of her face.

He brought her hand up to his face and kissed the backside of her hand. Casey almost melted feeling his soft lips grace the back of her hand.

"Well the heart rate and baby look normal," said Dr. Kline breaking the affectionate exchange between Cappie and Casey.

Dr. Kline wiped the gel off of Casey's stomach. Casey let go of Cappie's hand to pull her shirt back down and sit back up on the exam table.

"So everything is normal?" Casey asked.

"Couldn't be better," Dr. Kline replied. "The baby's heart is beating well, growth looks right on point and you're right on track with health and weight."

"That's good to know," Cappie replied.

"Now Casey," said Dr. Kline sitting back down into her chair and opening Casey's chart back up. "I know the last time you were here you were still making the decision as to what to do with the baby. I'm sure the two of you have talked it over. Have you made a decision?"

Casey froze. If the doctor would have asked her that question yesterday she would have said without a doubt that the baby would be terminated. But after picturing a future with Cappie and feeling his hand hold hers tightly today, she wasn't sure of the answer anymore.

"We've decided to terminate it," she heard Cappie tell the doctor.

"No," Casey managed to utter out of her mouth.

"What?" asked Cappie as he turned to look at her.

Casey just stared back at Cappie.

"I'm going to go print off a couple of ultrasound pictures for the two of you," said Dr. Kline. "Sounds like you need to talk."

With that Dr. Kline left the room leaving Cappie and Casey staring at each other.

"You don't want to terminate the baby anymore?" asked Cappie. "Does that mean you want to consider adoption?"

"No," was all Casey could say again.

"Case, you need to talk to me here," said Cappie.

"Cap, you know what I want," Casey replied.

"I need to hear you say it," Cappie stated as he stood up right in front of Casey as she continued to sit on the exam table.

Casey once again looked into Cappie's eyes. She could tell they were a lot more hopeful than before. There was more light in them and she could see a slight covering of water as they stared back into her eyes.

"I want to keep the baby," Casey finally said. "I want us to raise our child."

"Are, are you serious?" asked Cappie as the water escaped his eye and a tear fell down his face.

"Yes," Casey responded. "Hearing that heart beat, seeing our child and the feel of your hand clasped together with mine finally all seemed right. This feels right."

"Thank you God," said Cappie as he wrapped his arms around Casey and squeezed her tight. "I prayed all week that you would come around," he whispered in her ear.

Casey began to cry on Cappie's shoulder. He rubbed his strong hands up and down her back.

"I promise," said Cappie. "That I am going to be here for you and our child at all costs. If you ever need anything please don't hesitate to ask. I am going to be the best father I can be and that's something that will never, ever be a joke."

"I know Cap," she replied. "You're going to be an amazing father."

"And you an amazing mother," Cappie replied as he backed away from their embrace.

"Cap," asked Casey as Cappie wiped the tears off of his face. "If you wanted to keep the baby so badly why didn't you tell me? Why did you just go along with terminating it?"

"Because I knew that is what you wanted Case," he replied. "You're the mother; you're the one who has to carry the baby for nine months. I couldn't make you do anything you weren't willing to do."

"Oh," Casey replied nodding her head.

"I have to admit," Cappie continued. "I was hoping after you saw the baby you may change your mind. Things tend to feel more real once you see them with your own eyes."

"So we're going to do this?" Casey asked Cappie one last time. "We're going to be parents?"

Cappie took a step towards Casey and brushed a piece of her hair out of her face.

"Yes, we're going to do this," Cappie replied. "We are in this together, one hundred percent."

Casey leaned her head on Cappie's chest and wrapped her hands around his waist. Just then Dr. Kline walked back into the room observing the two of them embracing.

"Were you two able to talk?" she asked.

"Yeah," said Casey leaning up off of Cappie and wiping her face. "We've decided that we are going to keep the baby."

"Excellent decision," Dr. Kline replied with a smile.

She went over and jotted a few notes down into Casey's chart.

"Alright," she said. "I want to see you back here again in five weeks. At that time we will find out the gender of the baby if you two are interested in knowing."

"Sounds good," Cappie replied taking Casey's hand and helping her off of the exam table.

The two followed Dr. Kline out to the front desk and instructed the secretary that she wanted to see Casey again in five weeks.

"Oh, I almost forgot, here," said Dr. Kline handing Cappie and Casey each an ultrasound picture. "Congratulations mom and dad."

Casey scheduled her follow up appointment with the secretary and walked out hand in hand with Cappie, each staring at their picture. Once they got into the car Cappie pulled out his wallet and put the ultrasound picture in the front pocket.

"There," he said. "A proud daddy has gotta show off his kid right?"

Casey smiled at him as she put her picture in her purse. She knew she had just made the biggest decision of her entire life back in the doctor's office. But being with Cappie and seeing his excitement really rubbed off on her. It was almost like she didn't have time to be scared or nervous. Well, for a couple of days at least.

* * *

**_A/N: I think I'm spoiling everyone with daily updates.....LoL. But I'm so wrapped up in this story that I can't stop writing! And I'm so excited for you guys to find out what happens since you give me all the encouraging reviews to update soon :0) Keep them coming.....hope you liked this chapter.....I think it's too cute._**

**_And Hans153.....don't worry about your love for C/C I'm just as in love with them as you are.....best couple on TV!_**

**_And Ale-la-pazza1.....your reviews always make me smile. Thanks so much for the support!_**


	12. Follow Your Lead

FOLLOW YOUR LEAD

For the next three days Cappie and Casey didn't see each other very often. It certainly wasn't because they were avoiding each other. Things couldn't be further from the truth. After the doctor's appointment on Tuesday they both agreed that they needed to take a couple of days to let things sink in and concentrate back on school and Greek life for a little bit. They hadn't discussed who they were going to tell or when they were going to break the news but it was becoming a little bit harder for Casey to hide the fact that she was pregnant. She resorted to wearing baggy clothes, especially several shirts she had borrowed from Cappie.

It was Friday night and all of the ZBZ girls headed out to a mixer with Omega Chi. Casey had pretended all day to be sick so she could get out of the festivities of the evening. She was lying on her bed rubbing her stomach when there was a knock at the door.

"Come in," she said.

"You know you guys really should lock your front door once in a while," said Cappie as he entered her room. "Especially when there are precious people in here that need to be protected."

"Don't worry, Cappie junior is just fine," said Casey with a smile.

"Speaking on which," said Cappie. "How have you been feeling?"

"Actually things have been going really well," Casey replied. "I was reading that the 2nd trimester is typically the easiest. I haven't had any morning sickness for a while and I feel like I have a lot more energy."

"That's great," Cappie replied as he joined Casey and laid next to her on the bed.

Each of them was staring up at the plain white ceiling like it was the most fascinating thing they had ever seen.

"So I think we probably need to inform our parents pretty soon here," Casey finally said.

"Easy for you to say," Cappie replied. "My mom last called me when the semester started to let me know they were in New Mexico somewhere. I have no clue how to even get a hold of them."

"She didn't give you a number or anything?" Casey asked.

"Nope," Cappie replied. "They don't have a cell phone so I usually get once a month calls from pay phones so they can just check in."

"Well you haven't heard from them in a while," said Casey. "I'm sure you're due for a call here soon."

"You're probably right," Cappie replied. "I guess the next time they call I'll tell them."

Casey sighed.

"I have no idea how my parents are going to react," she said.

"You want to just call them now and get it over with?" Cappie asked.

"I know you have to tell your parents over the phone Cap," Casey replied. "But I think this is probably something that is better done in person since I'm able to."

"Yeah, you're probably right," Cappie replied continuing to stare at the ceiling.

There was a small silence.

"Hey, I know," said Cappie sitting up in the bed. "Let's road trip."

"Road trip?" Casey asked in a puzzled tone.

"Yeah, let's start tonight and head to Chicago," he continued. "It's only about a six or seven hour drive. We'll get there tomorrow and tell your parents."

"We?" asked Casey. "I was actually thinking this was something I was going to do on my own."

"Come on Case," said Cappie. "We are in this together. I want to be there when you tell your parents just like I want you there when I tell mine."

"I don't know…." said Casey in an unsure tone.

"Case, there is no time like the present," Cappie pleaded. "You're going to really start showing soon and you can't just go home in a couple of weeks looking like a blimp and say 'SURPRISE! I'M PREGNANT' and hope for a positive reaction from your parents."

"I am not going to look like a blimp in a couple of weeks," Casey glared at him.

"Come on, let's go," Cappie continued ignoring Casey's last comment nudging her arm. "It'll be fuuuunnn."

Casey thought about it for a few seconds, got up off of her bed and grabbed a bag out of her closet. She turned back to Cappie who was still on the bed staring at her.

"Well you better go pack a bag," Casey told him. "I wouldn't want to leave without you."

"Excellent," said Cappie as he stood up and ran out the door to pack his bag.

Casey pulled most of the bigger clothes she had out of the closet and threw them in the bag along with her toothbrush, toothpaste and hairbrush. She couldn't believe she was doing this. Cappie was the only person in the world who would get her to do something like this. But he was right. She was going to start really showing soon and she needed to tell her parents sooner than later. She actually entertained the thought that a road trip with Cappie would be fun. It would be much needed time for them to be together and sort out everything in their lives.


	13. Being Me

BEING ME

Casey pulled her car up to the front of the Kappa Tau house just as Cappie was walking out with his bag.

"I told Spitter where we were going," said Cappie putting his bag in the trunk. "He wishes us good luck."

"Yeah I texted Ashleigh," Casey replied. "She told me the same thing."

Cappie then opened up the driver's side door.

"Other side," he said sternly.

"Cap, this is my car," said Casey.

"Yes but you are pregnant," Cappie replied. "You don't need to be driving if you don't have to. Now get out."

Casey rolled her eyes at him as she took off her seatbelt and went to the other side of the car to get in. Cappie started the car back up and headed off towards the highway.

"I figured since it's around eight now we'll drive for two or three hours before stopping to find a place to sleep," he said.

"That sounds good to me," Casey replied.

"So," said Cappie as he merged onto the highway. "What should we talk about?"

Casey didn't reply.

"Something is on your mind," Cappie continued. "You know you can tell me anything Casey. Let's just talk."

"I'm kind of worried Cap," Casey admitted. "I know the decision we made to keep the baby is the best decision. I just have this empty vision of the future. You know me, I always have to have some sort of plan. I wish we had a plan."

"Well," said Cappie. "Graduation is just a little over a month away. What do you think we should do after graduation? Where do you want to go?"

"I always pictured going wherever my new job takes me," Casey replied with a sigh.

"Do you want to move back to Chicago?" asked Cappie. "I wouldn't mind living in Chicago."

"I don't want you to feel like you have to go wherever I want to go though," Casey replied.

"I go wherever my child goes," Cappie stated. "Besides, my parents are constantly moving around the country. It's not like I have anywhere to really call home to go to."

Casey felt bad for Cappie. He has never really had much of a relationship with his parents with them traveling all of the time. It's no wonder why he's so supportive to her and the baby. He wants to make sure the baby has the relationship with his or her parents that he never had.

"OK, so we'll both look for jobs in Chicago then," said Casey.

"Are you going to move in with your parents?" Cappie asked.

"Depends on how they take the news tomorrow," Casey replied. "But I also wouldn't mind getting an apartment or house with you. If you want to that is."

"I would like that a lot better than you living with your parents," said Cappie. "But I would deal with whatever I have to deal with to be near you and our child."

"I guess I would have to switch doctors if we move to Chicago," Casey said. "Man, one of us is going to have to find a job with health insurance quickly. There is no way we can pay for the hospital bill to have the baby."

"Case, it's probably going to have to be you to get health insurance," Cappie stated. "I don't think you could be on mine unless we're married."

The car became silent with Cappie's last comment.

"Cap, do you think we'll get married?" Casey asked.

"Case, I have something to tell you," said Cappie softly.

Casey turned to look at Cappie. His eyes remained locked on the road.

"What?" asked Casey nervously.

"No, it's nothing bad," Cappie reassured her. "I didn't tell you earlier because I didn't want us to make our decision to keep the baby based on it."

He saw Casey staring at him out of the corner of his eye.

"Casey, I have money," Cappie finally admitted.

"What do you mean?" Casey asked becoming confused.

Cappie took a deep breath.

"My dad was the only child of my grandparents. Grandma and grandpa were very wealthy I guess you could say. My grandmother passed away several years ago from cancer. When my grandfather started to get sick a few years ago he tried to pass his money down to my father. But my parents, being the free hippies that they are, refused the money. So my grandfather left all of his money to me, his only grandson."

He could tell Casey was giving him a somewhat confused look out of the corner of his eye again.

"Basically," he continued. "I didn't want to be an Evan Chambers. No one knows about the money. The only thing I use it for right now is school and my dues for Kappa Tau. It's not millions of dollars or anything so we're certainly not set for life. But I just want you to know that finances when it comes to our baby are not an issue. I can support us."

Casey sat there completely in shock.

"Cappie, I had no idea," she said.

"Case, no one did," Cappie replied. "And I would prefer to just keep that piece of information between us if you don't mind."

"No problem," Casey replied. "Thank you."

"No need to thank me," said Cappie. "Thank my grandparents."

"Well thank you grandma and grandpa Cappie," Casey said with a smile.

"OK, I don't know about you but I've had enough of deep planning conversation for now," said Cappie. "Let's talk about something non-baby related for a bit."

"OK," Casey replied.

So for the next hour and a half Cappie and Casey mostly made small talk in the car. They discussed music, movies and overall Greek life. The baby was mentioned a few times but mostly by Cappie who expressed what music and movies his child would and would not watch in life. Cappie saw Casey yawn around eleven and decided it was time to pull off the highway and find a hotel. They pulled into a Hampton Inn just over the state line into Indiana and checked into a room with two double beds.

"I'm going to go change into my pajamas," said Casey as she took her bag into the bathroom and shut the door.

Cappie took this opportunity to change into a pair of shorts and a t-shirt. He turned on the television and climbed into the bed on the right. A few minutes later Casey came out of the bathroom in shorts and a tank top.

"Can you really tell I'm showing?" she asked Cappie as she stood in a side profile at the foot of his bed.

"Not really," Cappie replied. "You may have a little bump but if it's any conciliation I think it's kind of cute."

"Thanks Cap," said Casey as she climbed into the other bed.

Casey relaxed in the bed as Cappie flipped through the television stations. He came across a rerun episode of House and stopped on that channel.

"Remember freshman year when cuddled in bed every Monday night and watched House?" Casey finally asked when the first commercial break came on.

"Of course," Cappie replied with a smile. "But you can't forget it was also blueberry pie night."

"Mmmmm, that sounds so good right now," said Casey rubbing her stomach underneath the covers.

"I swear if it wasn't almost midnight and I knew where in the heck we were I would find you some of that pie right now," said Cappie.

"That's sweet," Casey replied. "But I'm OK. I was just mentioning how good it sounded."

"I did pack some snack cakes in my bag," said Cappie. "Are you hungry? Would you want one?"

"Sure," Casey replied.

Cappie tossed the box of snack cakes to her just as the show was coming back from the commercial break. She took two out and ate them rather quickly.

"Wow, you were hungry," said Cappie as she gave the box back to him.

"Hey, did you forget I'm eating for two now?" Casey snapped.

"How could I forget?" Cappie asked sarcastically.

The next commercial break came on and Casey turned to Cappie.

"I have to admit Cap," she said. "I'm kind of lost in this episode. I haven't watched House since freshman year."

"You didn't continue to watch it?" Cappie asked.

"No, I guess I was always busy doing something on Monday nights," Casey replied.

"I never missed an episode," Cappie stated softly. "Watching it always reminded me of you."

Casey looked over at him and each of them smiled weakly as they made eye contact.

"Well, let me give you a quick rundown," Cappie finally said breaking their stare. "Basically Cameron and Chase are engaged and working at the hospital but not under House anymore. I believe we are watching the most recent season finale. The two of them get married and House gets put into a psych hospital because he's seeing things."

"Wow, this show got pretty crazy these past couple of years," Casey replied.

The show came back on and the two were silent watching intently. The next commercial break came on and Casey was about to ask Cappie for another snack cake when he spoke first.

"I feel really awkward with you in that bed over there," he said. "I always pictured us cuddling and watching House again."

He took a deep breath.

"So I don't suppose you would like to come over here and cuddle?" he continued.

Casey didn't even have to think about it. She jumped right out of her bed and snuggled in right next to Cappie. He put his arm around her shoulders and held her tight. The very end of the episode showed the wedding between Cameron and Chase. Casey couldn't help but take the moment and approach Cappie with something that had been bothering her.

"Cap, can I ask you a question?" she asked as the show ended.

"Hm?" Cappie asked increasing the tightness of his grasp around her.

"Don't get me wrong, I really appreciate your honesty earlier tonight telling me about your money," said Casey. "But I can't help but think about how you used that to completely do a 360 with the question I had asked you before that."

"And what was that question?" asked Cappie even though he already knew the answer.

"I had asked you if you thought we would ever get married," Casey replied.

Casey could feel Cappie stiffen up and she could hear his heart beat a little faster as her head rested right on his chest.

"Case, I don't even know if I would consider us together even right now," Cappie replied. "Let alone start talking about marriage."

"I don't see why we can't be together," Casey replied. "You told me you loved me the night we had sex. I know you still have feelings for me."

"I've always had feelings for you Casey," said Cappie. "That has never changed."

"So then what's the problem?" Casey asked sitting up so she could look at Cappie.

Cappie took a deep breath. "Case, I really don't want to talk about this right now. We have been having such a good time. Let's not ruin it," he stated.

"Why? What's wrong?" Casey asked.

Cappie took another deep breath. He stared at Casey. She gave him the pouty eyes he hated to see. He was always a sucker for them.

"Alright fine," he said. "If you must know I'm hesitant."

"Hesitant about what?" Casey asked.

"About your real motives," Cappie replied. "It seems to me a lot of your talk about getting back together is based on the baby. And I'm sorry but I'm not going to get down on one knee and ask you to marry me just for the sake of the baby. I want you and I to truly find that love and passion we had freshman year before heading into anything."

"I don't understand your reasoning Cap," said Casey in a frustrated tone. "I poured my heart out to you at the End of the World party and you were the one who rejected me. I made my feelings known way before this baby came along."

"I'm just being honest Case," said Cappie. "I don't feel that spark. I'm sorry."

He looked at Casey. She lowered her head to look at the bed. He knew she was hurt. The last thing he wanted to do what hurt her. But she needed to know how he was really feeling.

"Hey, come here," he said pulling her back down next to him.

He kissed her forehead softly.

"Just because the spark's not here now doesn't mean that it never will be," he tried to reassure Casey. "I still deeply care about you Casey. We're going to be parents. There is no greater bond between two people. I promise you that."

Casey looked up at Cappie so she could stare into his eyes.

"I can understand your reservations when it comes to our relationship," she said. "But I just want to tell you one thing."

Cappie looked at her straight in the eyes, showing her he would take in and keep anything she was about to say to him.

"That night we made this baby," she continued putting her hand on her stomach. "I know you don't remember this or anything, but right after you told me you loved me I told you that I loved you too. The feeling I felt with those exchange of words that night was mind-blowing. I never felt so connected with you. I never felt so in love with you, not even freshman year. That night was far from a one night stand. It was something unbelievably special for me. I just hope that one day you can realize how special it was for you too. Because even though you were drunk, I know those words coming out of your mouth were truthful and from the heart. You know what they say, with alcohol comes honesty. "

With that Casey leaned in and kissed Cappie on the cheek.

"Goodnight Cap," she said as she climbed out of his bed and back into her own.

Cappie couldn't say a word. The only thing he recognized was the tingling feeling that overcame his body as she told him how special that night was for her. He hadn't felt this tingling feeling in years and of course it scared him at first. But as he turned on his side to try and fall asleep he couldn't help but wonder if the spark was coming back, if he was truly in love with Casey Cartwright.

* * *

**_A/N: Hmmmm.....not much to say today.....haha. Just that I hope you guys liked the new chapters. Chapter 12 was pretty short so that's why I added 13 too. Keep up the great reviews, they give me motivation to write more and more!_**

**_And Hans153.....yes, Evan does find out.....and his reaction is anything but good.....but you'll have to wait until Chapter 21 to see what happens!_**


	14. Breaktown

BREAKTOWN

Cappie slowly woke up the next morning. He stretched his arms out wide as he sat up in bed. He looked over to find Casey's bed empty. His heart skipped a beat when he didn't see her around the room either. Cappie got out of bed and went over to the bathroom. The door was shut so he put his ear up against it to try and hear if Casey was in the shower or something. But all he heard were sounds of her vomiting.

"Case," he said lightly knocking on the door. "Are you OK?"

She didn't respond.

"Case?" he said again, this time slowly opening the door.

Casey leaned back against the bathtub as Cappie knelt down beside her.

"Hey…hey," he said softly wiping the tears off of her face. "Why didn't you wake me up? I'm here to help you."

"I know," she replied. "I was hoping it would be just one time but an hour later I'm still here."

Casey leaned towards the toilet as she got the feeling she had to throw up again. But soon rested back against the bathtub. False alarm.

"I thought you said the morning sickness was over?" Cappie asked.

"I thought it was," Casey replied. "I haven't had anything for almost a week. That's why I was surprised when I woke up this morning nauseated."

"You think maybe your nerves about telling your parents today had something to do with it?" Cappie asked.

"Probably," Casey said as she thought about Cappie's question for a second. "I'm sure my anxiety didn't help the baby and he or she decided to punish me."

The two of them sat in the bathroom for another ten minutes. Casey felt like she was finished so they made their way out to the bedroom.

"I'm going to hop in the shower," said Cappie. "Why don't you lie down and rest for a bit. You've had a long morning already."

"Alright," said Casey as she climbed under her covers. "Wake me up when you're done."

"I'll leave the door unlocked," said Cappie as he began to walk into the bathroom. "Just in case you need to make a run for it again."

"Thanks," Casey replied.

About an hour later the two of them were back on the road. They stopped briefly at McDonalds to get some breakfast and returned to the highway towards Chicago. Things were just a little more awkward in the car for the second half of the trip. After how the marriage conversation went last night Casey was afraid to touch another subject on the future. She figured Cappie had enough.

"So should we have a game plan to tell your parents?" Cappie finally asked.

"Good question," Casey replied. "How do you even start a conversation like that?"

"Don't ask me," Cappie replied. "I've never gone through this before."

They both didn't say anything for a few minutes, each pondering the best strategy in telling Casey's parents.

"I know," said Casey. "Let's all go out to dinner. We'll tell them at the restaurant. They can't blow up too much in a public place right?"

Cappie turned his head towards Casey and gave her a glare.

"You know that is probably the worst idea," Cappie said. "And even if we do tell them that way you know we'll hear it as soon as we all get back to your house."

"I really hope they don't get mad and kick us out. You don't think they'll kick us out do you?" Casey asked Cappie.

"Well they are your parents Case, not mine. If they are as nice as you and your brother though I don't see them kicking us out," Cappie replied. "And if they did then we would just get another hotel room, not a big deal."

"Are we going to tell them about your money?" Casey asked.

"I think we'll certainly have to," Cappie replied. "They are going to wonder how on earth two graduates just out of college are going to pay for a baby. In all honesty I think we just need to show them that we have a plan. It will help show them how serious and committed we are to the baby and the future."

"Yeah, uh, you're right," Casey responded as her eyes started to droop.

Cappie reached his coat out of the backseat and handed it to Casey.

"Here, use this as a pillow," he said. "You didn't sleep well this morning, you need a nap."

"Are you sure you know where you're going?" Casey asked bunching Cappie's coat up and resting it between her head and the window. It smelled just like him.

"I will get us there, don't you worry," Cappie replied.

* * *

"Case, Casey," said Cappie softly as he rubbed Casey's shoulder.

Casey took a deep breath and opened her eyes.

"We're here," Cappie said looking into her eyes.

"What? Already?" Casey asked sitting up in her seat.

She looked out the window at the house she grew up in. Her parents' cars were both in the driveway.

"I think I'm going to be sick again," she said clenching her stomach. "Can we go home?"

Cappie looked at her and laughed.

"Case, we can do this," he said again rubbing her shoulder. "I've met your parents before. They are not scary people."

Casey could feel tears build up in her eyes to go along with the nausea in her stomach.

"OK," she said taking a deep breath. "But we're not going to go in there and tell them right away. It has to be the right time. I'll just say that I haven't seen them in a while and decided to take a little road trip."

"And how are you going to explain my presence?" Cappie asked.

"They know we're friends," Casey replied. "I'll just tell them that you didn't have anything to do this weekend and decided to come with me."

"OK," Cappie replied thinking that her parents would probably see right through her little lies. But he didn't want to argue with her. In fact he was nervous too. But he knew that this was something that needed to be done sooner than later.

Cappie and Casey slowly opened their car doors and walked up to the front door. Casey hesitated at the door. She looked at Cappie for reassurance. He grabbed her shoulders and looked her straight in the eyes.

"We can do this," he said. "I'm here and will support you the entire way. If things go bad just remember that I'll always be here to help pick up the pieces."

The two of them embraced briefly. Casey pulled away as she knew if she was in his arms any longer she wouldn't want to let go. She put her hand on the doorknob and quietly opened the door.

"Hello?" she stated stepping into the house. "Anyone home?"

"Casey? Casey is that you?" her mom shrieked as she came walking out of the kitchen.

"Hi mom!" said Casey as happily as she could

"Russell come in here!" Mrs. Cartwright exclaimed as she gave Casey a hug. "Casey is here!"

Mr. Cartwright came into the foyer through the den to see Casey embracing her mother and Cappie standing nervously off to the side with his hands shoved in the pockets of his jeans.

"Hi dad!" said Casey as she went over to give her dad a hug also.

"Hi Case," her dad replied returning her embrace. "What brings you two here?"

Casey let go of her dad and went to go stand by Cappie.

"Well I mentioned to Cappie how I hadn't seen you guys in a while and he suggested we take a little road trip since we both didn't have anything to do this weekend," she said.

"Oh Cappie," said Karen Cartwright giving him a hug. "I'm sorry, I was so excited to see my daughter I didn't even notice you standing there."

"It's OK," Cappie replied softly

"How have you been Cappie?" asked Russell shaking Cappie's hand.

"Pretty good," Cappie replied.

"And how is the fraternity? Still hazing my little boy?" Russell added.

"Things with the fraternity are good," Cappie replied with a smile. "And no, now that Rusty is a fully fledged brother he doesn't have to do anything out of the ordinary."

"That's good to hear," Mr. Cartwright replied.

"Well why don't you kids come in and I'll get some drinks for everyone," Mrs. Cartwright stated as she directed them to the living room.

"Actually mom," said Casey. "Cappie and I just had a really long drive. Do you mind if we take a little nap? I promise we'll be up before dinner and then we can talk the rest of the night."

"I guess that's OK," Karen replied. "You know where your room is and you can show Cappie the guest bedroom."

"Thanks mom," Casey replied. "Come wake me up when dinner's ready if I'm not up already."

With that Casey grabbed Cappie's hand and pulled him upstairs with her.

"I sense something is up," whispered Russell to Karen as they watched Cappie and Casey walk up the stairs.

"No kidding," replied Karen as she headed back into the kitchen.

* * *

"Oh my god that was terrifying," said Casey as she led Cappie into her room and shut the door.

"Case, we barely said three sentences to them," Cappie replied.

"I could sense my dad doesn't like you," Casey exclaimed. "Oh god, my dad hates the father of my child!"

Casey plopped down on the bed and buried her face in her hands. Cappie came over and sat next to her.

"I thought things went well," he said rubbing his hand up and down her back. "Yes a little awkward, but it certainly wasn't horrible."

"I just want my parents to like you," said Casey looking up at Cappie.

"You're being ridiculous," Cappie replied. "Your parents didn't give any indication that they don't like me. Case, they hardly even know me."

Casey didn't respond. She stared into the depths of Cappie's electrifying blue eyes. How did he always know the right things to say? Why was his touch so comforting to her? She leaned in and rested her head on his shoulder. Cappie squeezed her tighter and kissed her forehead. After a few minutes Cappie finally spoke.

"As much as I don't want to let you go," he said. "You should probably show me the guest room so we really don't start off on the wrong foot with your parents."

"Good idea," Casey replied standing up.

Cappie followed her out the door and down the hallway.

"Here," she said opening the door to the guest room. "There's a TV in there you can turn on if you're not tired. Sorry about the whole nap thing. I had to come up with some sort of excuse. I wasn't ready to tell them just then."

"I understand," Cappie replied.

He was about to walk into the room when he saw Casey drop her gaze to the ground. He knew she was fighting back tears. He wasn't quite sure what to say. He could only tell her everything was going to be OK so many times. So Cappie just wrapped his arms around her tightly as she returned his embrace.

"I'll see you in a couple of hours," he whispered as he let her go and walked into the room.

Casey stood there and watched him shut the door. She then quietly walked back to her room not noticing her mother standing at the bottom of the stairs, witnessing the short conversation and more-than-friendly embrace her daughter had just shared with Cappie.

* * *

**_A/N: So nothing too monumental in this chapter.....just building up to letting her parents know about the baby which is in the next chapter. _**

**_trinnn.....I see your point with the whole spark thing. I probably should have exclained "Cappie's thoughts" a little bit better in the last chapter. Deep down he still knows that the spark is still there. He's just really holding back when it comes to Casey because she has hurt him so many times in the past. He's worried that her feelings for him have gotten stronger because of the baby and not so much because of him and he just wants to make sure that she wants to be with him for him and not just because he's the father of the baby._**


	15. Make It Out Alive

MAKE IT OUT ALIVE

Casey tossed and turned for what seemed like hours before she fell asleep. She was surprised she actually did fall asleep. Her alarm went off at 6:30. She went ahead and set it because the thought of being alone with her mother without Cappie near her scared the living daylights out of her. She made sure she was up so her mother didn't have to come wake her. She slowly got out of bed and put on a hooded sweatshirt. As she opened the door she could smell the aromas of her mom's cooking. She wanted to say it was spaghetti but wasn't quite sure. She walked down to the guest bedroom to see the door open. Cappie wasn't inside. Instantly Casey panicked and hurried downstairs.

"Oh honey you're up," said her mom as she entered the kitchen.

Casey looked at Cappie standing next to her mom cutting up vegetables for the salad.

"Yeah, I had a good nap," Casey said glaring at Cappie looking for him to give her any indication as to why he was in the kitchen cooking with her mother.

"Cappie's been a huge help," she continued. "You know how the carpal tunnel gets in my hands sometimes. He offered to do all of the prep work for me."

"How long have you been down here?" Casey asked suspiciously

"I don't know, about an hour or so," Cappie replied. "I couldn't sleep so I decided to help your mom out with dinner."

"Where's dad?" asked Casey

"Oh your father's been in and out," Karen replied. "He'll be in here chatting with us one minute and then off to the den to watch the football game the next. That's probably where he is now."

Casey slid into one of the seats at the kitchen table feeling somewhat betrayed by Cappie. She looked at him as he flashed her a smile trying to let her know that everything was OK.

"Case, why don't you go set the dining room table," said her mother. "And tell your dad dinner will be ready in five minutes."

Casey went over to the cupboard and grabbed the plates and silverware she needed to set the table. After that was completed she let her father know it was time for dinner. Cappie and Casey sat at the table first, waiting for Casey's parents to join them.

"You didn't tell my mother anything did you?" Casey whispered to him

Cappie shook his head no just as Mr. Cartwright entered the dining room.

"Cappie, can I get you something to drink? A beer maybe?" he asked setting his own beer down on the table.

"That sounds great," Cappie replied.

"And Case?" Mr. Cartwright asked.

"I'll just have water," Casey replied.

Mr. Cartwright left to go get the drinks as Mrs. Cartwright brought the spaghetti and garlic bread to the table.

"Smells delicious mom," said Casey. "I've really missed your cooking."

"Why thank you honey," she replied setting down the food. "I'll go get the salad and we should be ready to eat."

Mr. Cartwright returned with their drinks and sat down.

"I'm starving," he said taking a sip of his beer.

"Me too," Casey replied.

Mrs. Cartwright returned with the salad and two glasses full of wine.

"You have to try this new wine I found Case," she said. "It has a real sweet taste and I just love it."

Casey and Cappie exchanged nervous glances as Casey took the wine from her mother.

"Thanks mom," she replied setting the glass down in front of her.

The four of them dipped up the food and ate engaging in chatting and small talk. Cappie and Mr. Cartwright discussed the football game while Casey and her mom discussed upcoming graduation and the vacation in August her parents were planning to go on. They were all finishing their last bites when Casey's mom turned to her.

"Case you haven't tried that wine I gave you," she said. "You won't be disappointed I promise."

"Oh well, I, uh," Casey stuttered. "I wanted to leave it for dessert. Since you said it was pretty sweet and all."

Casey's mom gave her a strange look but quickly shook it off when she remembered dessert.

"Well speaking of dessert," she said. "I'm going to go get everyone a piece of cherry pie if that is OK."

"Sounds great honey," Mr. Cartwright said. "Make sure you put whip cream on mine."

"Yeah, mine too," said Casey.

"I'll go help you if you want," said Cappie standing up.

"I would love that," Mrs. Cartwright stated smiling at Cappie.

The two of them went into the kitchen.

"You're boyfriend there is really trying to suck up to mom," Casey's dad stated once they were out of the room.

Casey rolled her eyes at her father.

"He's not my boyfriend dad," she said. "We're just friends."

"I don't know," Mr. Cartwright said with a smirk. "Your mom told me she saw you two share a pretty passionate hug earlier. Something a little more than friends share."

Casey's heart skipped a beat when her dad said that. She wondered if her mom had heard any of the conversation too.

"If it's any conciliation," her dad continued. "I like the kid. He may be trying a little too hard to please your mother but he seems like he's got a good head on his shoulders."

Casey smiled. Hearing her dad say that really gave her some relief of the stress that kept building up inside of her. At least her dad liked Cappie. It was a start in the right direction.

Cappie and Mrs. Cartwright returned with the plates of pie and they all began to eat. Casey ate her piece rather quickly hoping the food stuffed in her mouth would prevent her from having to talk too much. Casey set the fork down on her plate and looked down at her hands. They were shaking. She quickly moved them to under the table hoping no one would see.

"Casey, is there something wrong?" her mom asked. "You look a little flustered."

"Oh, I'm OK," Casey lied.

"Why don't you try that wine then," her mother stated sensing Casey's odd expression. "It might help calm you a little bit."

Casey looked across the table to Cappie. She knew it was time. It was now or never. He nodded his head slightly at her letting her know that he was as ready as she was.

"Mom, I can't have the wine," she finally blurted out.

Her mom just stared at her blankly, not knowing what to say. Casey looked over at her father who had the same blank expression on his face, trying to figure out what she was trying to tell them. Mr. Cartwright finally got the nerve to speak up.

"I don't understand Case," he said. "What is wrong with the wine?"

Casey's head started to spin. She could feel the spaghetti in her stomach start to get tossed around. Why did she always get so nauseated in these tense moments? She again looked over at Cappie. She wished he had sat next to her. She wanted to have him hold her hand so badly right now. But he was too far away. She was on her own.

"Nothing is wrong with the wine dad," she finally said. "I can't have the wine because….."

Casey trailed off. She shot glances at both her mom and dad trying to see if either of them had got the hint without her actually having to say the words out loud. But each of them continued with their same blank stares.

"I'm pregnant," she stated.

As soon as she said the words Casey wanted more than anything to crawl under the table and hide like she was 4 years old again. She looked at her mom first. She looked like she was starting to hyperventilate, her jaw dropped down in shock. She then turned to her dad who had leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms. Her mom looked shocked, her dad looked pissed. She then turned to Cappie. He sat there with his hands folded in front of him on the table also glancing back and forth between her parents.

"Um, are you sure?" her mom finally asked.

"Yes, I'm sure," Casey replied.

It was her mom's turn to sit back in the chair.

"_Uh oh_," Casey thought. "_Now she's angry_."

Silence filled the room for several minutes. Casey finally let out a few tears loose as she looked at her mom.

"Mom, please say something," she begged.

Karen hadn't taken her eyes off of Russell at the other end of the table. It was like they were silently talking to each other through their eyes so Cappie and Casey couldn't hear. When her mom didn't reply right away Casey stood up from her chair.

"Well I'll guess we'll be leaving now," she said as Cappie began to stand up from his chair also.

"Sit down you two," Mr. Cartwright stated.

They both obeyed, sitting back down in their chairs.

"How far along are you Casey," her mom finally asked.

"Twelve, almost thirteen weeks," Casey replied softly.

Her mom's eyes grew wide. She didn't expect Casey to say she was that far along. There was another long silence.

"And I assumed you're the father," Mr. Cartwright said glancing over at Cappie.

Cappie just nodded his head. He felt the less he could say at this point the better.

"Casey why didn't you tell us earlier?" her mom asked.

"I was scared," said Casey shrugging her shoulders. "And for a while Cappie and I weren't even sure if we were going to keep the baby or not."

"Case you know you can tell me anything," her mom replied. "I think I'm more hurt that you didn't tell me sooner than I am that you are actually pregnant. I could have been there for you."

"I know," Casey replied. "But I have had a lot of support from my friends. Ashleigh was a huge help during the morning sickness, Rusty actually went to my first doctor's appointment with me and Cappie…." Casey glanced over at Cappie and smiled. "Cappie has been absolutely amazing,"

Mrs. Cartwright looked at Cappie.

"What do you think of all this?" she asked.

Cappie was taken back by her question. He was hoping he wouldn't have to do much talking. But nonetheless he knew if he just spoke from his heart things would be OK.

"I have never been happier in my entire life," he said smiling at Mrs. Cartwright. "Knowing that I am going to be a father has certainly been terrifying but I'm ready to be there through everything. And I want you to know that I'm going to be there for your daughter always."

Cappie finally reached his hand across the table to Casey's. She put her hand into his and he squeezed it tight. It was exactly what she needed.

"I'm sorry guys," said Mr. Cartwright in a disapproving tone. "But how on earth are you going to support a child? You're barely going to have a few months of work after graduation to save up some money before the baby is born."

"There's no need to worry dad," said Casey. "Cappie has money saved up from the inheritance he got from his grandfather. It's plenty to keep us at least on our feet."

"Oh, well that's reassuring," said Mr. Cartwright with a small smile on his face.

Mrs. Cartwright stood up and walked over to Casey. She held her arms out in front of her. Casey stood up and immediately gave her mother a hug.

"I'm so happy for you Casey," he mother said as she started to cry.

"Thanks mom," Casey replied squeezing her mom tighter.

Her mom backed away wiping the tears off her face and then walked over to Cappie.

"Congratulations dad," she said extending her arms out to him.

Cappie stood up and hugged Casey's mom. Mrs. Cartwright returned to her seat after getting the box of tissues off of the counter.

"Mom," said Casey as she grabbed a tissue from the box. "How come you're not upset? I thought you would hate me."

"First of all," said Casey's mom. "Something you will realize in the next few years is that you can't hate your children. Secondly, you're an adult Case. You're going to graduate college in another month. Sure this may have been a happier moment if you had been married and more of a planned pregnancy but there is nothing to change now. What has happened was meant to happen for some reason and there is no reason to be upset. Having a baby is a happy event. You, and certainly the baby, don't need the stress of your parent's disapproval."

"Aw mom," said Casey as she continued to have tears fall down her cheeks. "That means so much to me. I love you."

"I love you too," her mom replied.

Casey turned to her father. He had been silent for a while. She was happy to know she had her mother's approval but she knew things wouldn't be completely well unless she had her father's approval too.

"Dad?" she asked hoping her dad would feel the same as her mom.

"Case are you guys sure you're ready to take on raising a child?" her father asked. "You guys don't know what you are in for."

"You didn't know what you were in for when you guys had me," Casey rebutted.

"Yes, point taken," her father replied a little shocked at Casey's response. "But you're my little girl. It's just hard for me to see my little girl having a little girl or boy of her own."

"I know," said Casey looking at the table playing with the tissue in her hand.

She felt Cappie reach over and tap her on the hand. She looked up at Cappie who was gazing to the side of Casey. Her dad was standing next to her. Casey quickly stood up and wrapped her arms around her father. He put his right hand on the back of her head and pulled her close to him.

"I love you Case," he said. "I'm happy for you, I really am. As my child I just have to make sure you're protected. I want to make sure you have a plan and can handle this."

"I can handle this," Casey replied backing away from her father. "Correct that, Cappie _and_ I can handle this."

"I know you can sweetheart," her dad replied.

Casey sat back down in her chair just as her mother stood up.

"Russ, why don't you help me with the dishes in the kitchen," she said thinking Casey and Cappie may want to be alone for a minute.

"Sure," replied Mr. Cartwright gathering all of the pie plates and following his wife into the kitchen.

As soon as they left Cappie immediately stood up and went over to Casey's side of the table.

"You didn't say much," she smiled as she stood up and wrapped her arms around his waist.

"I didn't have to," he replied pulling her into his arms. "I think what I did say got the point across well."

"That really went surprisingly well," Casey admitted.

"Didn't I tell you it would?" Cappie replied.

"Yes you did," Casey said nodding her head.

Cappie kissed Casey's forehead. She returned the affection by squeezing him a little tighter.

"I have to use the restroom," she said backing away. "I'll catch up with you in a little bit."

"OK," Cappie replied letting go of Casey and watching her walk upstairs with a smile plastered across his face.

"Cappie," he heard a voice behind him.

He turned to see Mr. Cartwright had come back into the dining room.

"Yes?" replied Cappie.

"Why don't you join me outside so we can have a talk, man to man," he said.

It was Cappie's turn to freeze. He thought they were home free. But he was willing to do whatever he had to for Casey and the baby. And if that meant getting chewed out by her father for getting her pregnant then that was something he was willing to deal with.

* * *

**_A/N: OK so I felt guilty because chapter 14 wasn't that exciting. And because I LOVE all my readers I decided to post 15 also tonight. Let me know what you think! Review!_**

**_Uh oh, poor Cappie....hopefully Casey's dad is nice to him in the next chapter....LoL!_**


	16. Now I See

NOW I SEE

Mr. Cartwright escorted Cappie out to the back deck. He handed Cappie another beer as they sat down in the patio chairs.

"Nice night," said Cappie as calmly as he could. He knew he wasn't out there for small talk but wanted to say something at least before Mr. Cartwright did.

"Sure is nice out here," Mr. Cartwright replied.

They sat in silence for a bit. The only sounds they could hear were the crickets chirping around them and the occasional sip of beer.

"I wanted to talk with you about the future son," said Mr. Cartwright. "As a father I have to make sure my baby girl is taken care of."

"I understand," Cappie replied. "And Casey and I have had several discussions about the future and raising the baby."

"Do you know where you'll be headed after graduation?" Mr. Cartwright asked before taking a drink of his beer.

"Casey and I are planning on moving here actually," said Cappie.

Mr. Cartwright shot Cappie a disapproving look.

"Well, not here in this house," Cappie corrected himself. "Not me at least. Casey wasn't sure if she was going to live with you guys or in an apartment with me."

"I've got a buddy who has a house for rent, possibly rent to own," said Mr. Cartwright. "It's up in Kenilworth, about fifteen or twenty minutes from here. Very nice house and they have excellent schools there. I can take you by there tomorrow before you leave if you want."

"Are you sure?" Cappie asked completely shocked by Mr. Cartwright's offering.

"I want to make sure you guys are set," he replied. "And I want to know that my grandchild is in a good school system."

"Well I would be happy to go look at it with you tomorrow," said Cappie. "Thanks."

"You're welcome," Mr. Cartwright replied.

"One thing though," said Cappie.

Mr. Cartwright turned to look at him.

"Can we not tell Casey about it?" he asked. "I mean not until I look at it and we get a contract signed. It's something I would love to surprise her with."

"I can go along with that," Mr. Cartwright replied. "I'll try to get Karen to take Casey out to breakfast or shopping or something and we'll go look at it then."

"Sounds good," Cappie replied.

"Has Casey been to the doctor?" Mr. Cartwright continued.

"Yes she has. Do you want to see the ultrasound picture?" Cappie asked.

"Sure," replied Mr. Cartwright.

Cappie pulled his wallet out of his pants and handed the picture to Casey's dad.

"Wow," he said.

"I know right?" said Cappie. "I said the exact same thing when I saw it for the first time."

"Are you guys going to find out if it's a boy or a girl?" Mr. Cartwright asked handing the picture back to Cappie.

"I don't know," Cappie replied putting the picture back in his wallet. "We haven't discussed that yet. She goes for her next ultrasound at the end of April. The doctor said we could find out then."

"In my opinion," said Mr. Cartwright taking a drink of his beer. "I would want to know. Just because it's easier to buy things when you know the sex of the baby. So keep that in mind."

"I will," replied Cappie also taking a drink of his beer.

"Sounds like you guys have a plan pretty set in place for the baby," said Mr. Cartwright

Cappie nodded his head in agreement.

"But what about the two of you?" he continued. "Is there any romance between you two?"

"Without a doubt there is," said Cappie. "Casey means everything to me."

"So why aren't you two together then?" asked Mr. Cartwright turning to Cappie. "When I talked to Casey earlier tonight about it she said you weren't even her boyfriend."

"it's kind of complicated sir," said Cappie looking down at the ground.

"Well talk to me son," he replied.

Cappie took a deep breath.

"Casey and I have a lot of history," Cappie started in disbelief he was even talking to Casey's dad about this. "She broke up with me freshman year because I wasn't good enough for her. I was more concerned with partying and not focused on the future at all. She broke my heart. I was in love with her and I believe if she would have let me I could have shown her I did care about the future. But she started dating Evan instead."

Mr. Cartwright nodded his head. He had met Evan several times. He never really liked the kid. Evan was too stuck up and controlling for his daughter.

"Casey and I have always remained friends," Cappie continued. "Over the past two years I have tried to win her back on a couple of different occasions, only to have her reject me once again because I wasn't good enough for her. Now with the baby on the way I have been more focused than ever. I finally have something to look forward to in my life. But I'm scared to try and start a relationship with Casey again. I'm afraid she's in love with me again more because of the baby than it is about me. I can't allow myself to become invested in a future with her just for her to realize once again that I'm not good enough for her. I may seem like I'm Mr. Future right now but I don't feel I've really changed to be the person that she wants me to be."

Mr. Cartwright didn't reply.

"Just know that even if Casey and I aren't together I will be there to love and support her and my child with everything I have. We don't necessarily have to be together to provide our child with a loving home," continued Cappie trying to reassure Mr. Cartwright that Casey was in good hands.

"I respect your honesty Cappie," he finally said. "And I can certainly see where you are coming from. Just because there is a baby involved doesn't mean you have to run off and get married. But I have seen you two interact and there is no denying that there is something there."

Cappie nodded his head in agreement. His heart was starting to flutter talking about Casey like this.

"You're a good guy Cappie," said Mr. Cartwright standing and extending his hand to Cappie.

Cappie shook Mr. Cartwright's hand firmly as the two of them headed towards the door.

"And just an FYI," said Mr. Cartwright before opening the door. "If you ever do decide you want to make something with my daughter forever, you have my blessing."

"Thanks Mr. Cartwright," said Cappie with a smile. "That means a lot to me."

The two of them walked inside to find the kitchen and living room empty.

"The ladies must have gone to bed," said Mr. Cartwright looking at his watch. "You want to see if there are any late night games on tonight?"

Cappie hesitated.

"I'll join you in a bit," he stated. "I want to say goodnight to Casey first."

"I'll be in the den," said Mr. Cartwright as he walked away.

* * *

Cappie quietly walked up the stairs and made his way to Casey's room. He noticed the light was still on and the door was cracked. He was about to walk in when he heard voices coming from inside. Casey was talking with her mom. He felt bad for doing it but he decided to listen in.

"Oh the morning sickness has just been awful mom," Casey said. "Some days I would throw up for hours."

"The doctor I'm sure can give you something safe for the baby to help you with that," her mom replied.

"It's OK," said Casey. "Today was the first time I've thrown up in about a week and I think a lot of it had to do with my nerves about coming here."

"I see," her mom replied. "So, you seriously considered terminating the baby?"

"Yeah, I did," Casey replied. "It was certainly against all my good judgments but terminating or keeping the baby were my only two choices. I just couldn't give the baby up for adoption. After carrying him or her for nine months, I just couldn't see myself giving it up. Plus I believe in my heart that no other couple will love this baby more than Cappie and I."

"So what was Cappie's view on what to do with the baby?"

"Cappie has actually wanted to keep the baby from the moment I told him," Casey replied. "I think he only went along with the idea of terminating it because he knew that it was what I wanted."

"So what made you change your mind?" her mother asked.

Cappie stood a little closer to the door. That was the same question he had wanted to ask Casey all week.

"It was kind of a surreal experience mom," Casey replied. "The morning we were going to tell the doctor our decision Ashleigh asked me if this same situation happened three years from now if I would keep the baby or not. I told her I would probably keep it because three years from now Cappie and I would both have established careers and had time to grow up. Then she explained to me that other than not having established careers, the situation now is no different than it would be three years from now. Cappie and I are in love with each other. We'll still probably be in love with each other three years from now. For all I know I don't think I ever stopped loving him after we broke up freshman year."

Casey took a deep breath.

"It was then I realized that keeping the baby wasn't so much about keeping the baby anymore," she continued. "Keeping the baby was more about my readiness to be with Cappie. It was about whether the two of us would be able to make our relationship work and get married and raise our child. So that morning I pulled out our relationship box I had made freshman year. Reading all of the notes he wrote to me and seeing all of the pictures of the two of us gave me that warm feeling all over again. It made me realize that we could make this work. That our love was strong enough to be together and raise a child."

"That's really an amazing epiphany," Casey's mom replied.

"Yeah well too bad I was wrong," Casey replied.

Cappie heard Casey sniffle. He knew she was crying.

"What do you mean you were wrong?" Mrs. Cartwright asked.

"Last night Cappie and I had a conversation about marriage and the future of our relationship," Casey replied. "Cappie thinks that my motives to marry him are strictly based on the baby. He thinks that if the baby wasn't involved there is no way I would be with him. I just can't seem to get him to realize that my decision to be with him had nothing to do with the baby. I wanted to terminate the pregnancy. But when I decided I wanted to be with him, I decided I wanted to keep the baby. I guess he thinks it happened the other way around, that I decided to keep the baby and then automatically we should be together for the sake of the baby."

Cappie heard Casey sniffle again.

"Mom ever since I told him about the baby he has been nothing but supportive," Casey continued. "He's been there through morning sickness, through doctor's appointments and even came here to support me while I told you guys about the pregnancy. I can really see him being the perfect husband for me and the perfect father for our child. But I'm hurt that it may never happen."

"So since he doesn't want to be with you do you regret your decision to keep the baby then?" Mrs. Cartwright asked.

"Never," Casey replied without hesitation. "I know I made the right decision because even though I can't love Cappie like I want to love him, I know he's always going to be there for this baby. We're such great friends that I don't see scheduling visits or living situations or any of that stuff will be a problem."

"Well, until he gets a girlfriend and starts bringing her around," Casey's mom suggested.

"Ugh," Casey replied. "Let's not even think about that."

Cappie backed away from the door. As much as he wanted to listen for the rest of the night he had heard enough. He considered going back downstairs and joining Mr. Cartwright in watching the football game but he elected to go to bed instead. His mind was spinning with everything he had just heard Casey say to her mother. He heard things that he would have just shrugged off if she would have told him personally because he thought she wanted to be with him because she wanted the baby. But hearing Casey tell her feelings to someone else was completely different. He knew what she was saying was the truth. And as much as those words made his head spin, they also made him one of the happiest men in the world at the same time. Maybe a relationship with Casey will happen after all.

* * *

**_A/N: So sad news, after writing chapter 33 I got terrible writer's block last night. BUT....good news.....I got out of it :0) And chapters 34 and 35 were written. Woo Hoo! I hope you guys liked this chapter. If I get some reviews before the night's end maybe I'll post the next chapter. If not it will be up tomorrow as planned :0)_**


	17. Desire

DESIRE

The next day Casey and her mom got up early and went to breakfast by her dad's suggestion. It ended up being a perfect time for Casey. She really needed her mom more than ever to help her through this pregnancy. It was nice that they got to sit down and her mom could share tips and information she learned from when she was pregnant.

Cappie and Mr. Cartwright snuck out of the house soon after the ladies left to go look at the house. Cappie loved the neighborhood and the house and knew Casey would be just as happy. He didn't hesitate signing the lease and making the first payment. As of May 1st the house would be theirs. It was the house they were going to raise their child in. He wasn't quite sure how he was going to tell Casey about the house. He asked Mr. Cartwright to let him think about it for a bit and still keep the secret between the two of them.

Around noon Casey and Cappie decided to head back to Cyprus Rhodes. It was a long drive home and they wanted to make sure they gave themselves plenty of time. Saying goodbye to her mom was hard for Casey but her mom assured Casey that she was only a phone call away if she needed anything.

The two of them had been on the road for about two hours. As soon as they got on the highway Casey had taken Cappie's jacket and fell asleep. He wondered how much sleep she had gotten the night before. Because the fact was that he barely got any. The words Casey had said to her mother kept replaying in his head over and over again. Cappie looked over at Casey. She looked so peaceful sleeping on his jacket. Over the course of the night he thought about asking her to marry him, he thought about telling her that he loved her, sober this time of course, and he thought about taking her into his arms and kissing her ever so softly. Cappie sighed as he suddenly heard a ding come from the dashboard of the car. The car needed gas. He pulled off at the next exit and pulled into the gas station. As soon as the car came to a stop Casey woke up.

"What are we doing?" she asked still half asleep

"Just getting some gas," Cappie replied. "I'm going to get something to drink too. Do you want anything?"

"A bottle of water would be nice," Casey replied.

"OK, I'll be right back."

Cappie set the gas pump to fill the car and ran into the store to get their drinks. Casey sat in the car stretching her entire body. She couldn't believe she had slept the entire two hours. She heard Cappie finish pumping the gas and came over to his side of the car.

"Here you go," he said handing her the bottle of water as he got into the car. "Oh, and this too."

Cappie handed her a long stem red rose he had bought in the store.

"Cap, are you trying to romance me?" Casey asked in a joking tone.

"Maybe," was all Cappie replied as he winked and smiled at her.

Casey smelled the rose rolling her eyes at Cappie. It was not nice to tease her. Cappie started the car back up and got back onto the highway.

"So I think it's time we start telling people about the baby," he said to her. "You're really going to start showing soon and I would rather just come clean with people rather than having a bunch of rumors and gossip floating around."

"I agree," replied Casey.

"Great," said Cappie. "I'm going to tell my brothers tomorrow night at the chapter meeting."

"Tomorrow?" Casey gulped. "Why so soon?"

"Why not?" Cappie replied. "You should tell your sisters tomorrow too at your meeting."

Casey didn't say anything.

"Come on Case, we're on a roll," said Cappie. "Look at how well things went with your parents. I think we should keep things going and just tell everyone."

"Aren't you afraid of their reaction?" Casey asked.

"My brothers?" asked Cappie. "Not at all. I honestly think they are going to be more excited than I was. And you shouldn't be afraid of your sisters' reaction. If they are truly your sisters they'll stand by you and be excited for you."

"I guess you're right," Casey replied.

"I know I'm right," Cappie corrected her.

"So," said Casey. "Which one of us is going to be the lucky one to tell Evan?"

Cappie didn't reply.

"I guess that's my cue to be the one to tell him," she said taking his silence as her answer.

"He might be kind of upset," said Cappie.

"Why?" Casey asked. "We're all friends now."

"Because I told him that we had sex already," Cappie said. "He got upset because the two of us agreed that things would get weird if one of us hooked up with you again."

"So you two had some little pack against me?" Casey asked bitterly.

"It's not like that," Cappie replied. "We just really wanted to try and make the three musketeers work again that's all. And you have to admit that when you and I dated freshman year Evan was kind of the third wheel."

"Yeah, that's true," Casey replied. "But we are all older and Evan is dating Rebecca now. Things are different."

"You're right," said Cappie. "Hey, why don't we tell him together?"

"That could work," Casey said thinking about how they were exactly going to break the news.

"Good," said Cappie as he leaned over and rested his hand on top of Casey's leg.

At first Casey thought it was just an accident. But Cappie didn't move it away. He kept his hand on her leg the entire rest of the way home. Casey tried hard not to get her hopes up. Sure his hand on her leg was nothing monumental but it was the exact same thing he did when they dated freshman year. Every time they got into the car he always leaned slightly to the right and rested his hand on her leg. It was one of the things he did that reminded her of how much he loved her. She tried her hardest to shake those thoughts out of her head though. He didn't love her like that anymore.

With a stop for dinner and the occasional bathroom break they made it back to Cyprus Rhodes around 8:30. Cappie pulled up in front of the ZBZ house and parked Casey's car.

"Aren't you going to let me drop you off at the KT house first?" asked Casey.

"Na," Cappie replied. "I only have my bag to carry. It's not that long of a walk."

They both got out of the car and grabbed their bags out of the trunk.

"I'll walk you to the door," said Cappie and he followed Casey up the path to the ZBZ house.

"Cap, thank you so much for making me do this and coming with me," Casey said as they reached the door. "It really means a lot to me."

"It was nothing," Cappie replied. "You know I would do anything for you and Cappie junior."

Casey looked at the ground and laughed.

"I hope for your sake it is a boy," she said continuing to giggle. "Because calling our little girl Cappie junior is kind of odd."

Cappie just smiled back at her.

"Well we've had a long day," said Casey. "I'm probably going to head to bed early. Do you want to meet up after the chapter meetings tomorrow to go over how things went?"

Casey looked up at Cappie. He was staring right at her. Cappie looked like his train of thought was somewhere else.

"Cap?" asked Casey.

"Uh, yeah, that sounds good," Cappie replied looking deep into Casey's eyes.

"Well goodnight," said Casey as she turned towards the door.

"Case wait," said Cappie.

Casey turned around as Cappie dropped his bag and pulled her close to him. Their lips were almost touching. Casey gasped a breath in not knowing what to do. But Cappie quickly took control plunging his lips towards hers. At first she didn't kiss him back, completely in shock of what was happening. But after a few seconds she allowed herself to relax and kissed him back wrapping her arms around his neck. They each broke away to catch their breath. Cappie continued to stare into Casey's eyes as he began to hyperventilate himself. He then realized he wanted more so he leaned back in towards her, this time getting her to let him slip his tongue in her mouth to wind around hers ever so playfully. The two eventually broke away again resting their foreheads against each other and quietly hyperventilating.

"Wow," Cappie finally managed to say.

All Casey could do was reply with a smile. She was speechless.

Cappie finally backed away and reached down to pick his bag back up.

"So I'll see you tomorrow?" he asked smiling at Casey.

"Yeah," Casey said with a deep breath trying to calm herself down.

Cappie began to turn away but quickly turned back around to Casey. He put his arm around the small of her back and pulled her close to him for one last kiss, this one much softer than the others. It was the perfect goodnight kiss.

"Sleep tight," he whispered to her as he backed away and began walking down the ZBZ path.

Casey stood on the porch and watched him the entire way back to his house. She noticed he glanced back a few times to look at her. Something incredible had just happened. Did Cappie finally realize just how much she loved him? She figured the answer to the question was yes because even though the two of them didn't share any words, the passion in his kisses told the whole story. Casey was suddenly shaken out of her thoughts when her phone vibrated. She took it out of her pocket and opened it up. It was a text from Cappie.

"_I'm home. Go inside and go to bed now sweetheart."_

Casey smiled ear to ear as she shut her phone and walked into the ZBZ house. He hadn't called her his sweetheart in years.

* * *

**_A/N: *sigh* Love is in the air again right? I love writing Cappie's character :0) Anyway, hope you enjoyed this chapter. Let me know what you guys think in the reviews! The KT brothers and ZBZ sisters find out in the next chapter......wonder how they'll react..... _**


	18. Something Going Round

SOMETHING GOING ROUND

The next day Cappie went to his classes like he normally did. There was one main difference today. Today he was genuinely happy. People were starting to notice the smile that he just couldn't get off of his face. Kissing Casey last night was just what he needed. It was like the entire world stopped when their lips met. He couldn't wait to kiss her again. All he had to do was get through his chapter meeting, wait for hers to be done and he would have her again.

The Kappa Tau brothers all piled into the living room around 8 o'clock. Cappie took the president's chair in the front of the room and banged his gavel, signifying the beginning of the meeting. He began the meeting with the usual business. They discussed elections coming up for offices. He really was hoping Rusty would take his place as president. Then they talked about the blow-out end of the year party they were throwing and how they were going to get the funds to pay for it. Finally, at the very end of every meeting they leave a little time for brothers to do news and announcements. Cappie was hoping someone else would have something to say so he didn't have to be the only one. Thank god Beaver stood up.

"I would like to announce," he said. "That we are out of Cheeseretos. So pledges need to pick some up at the store ASAP. Thank you."

Beaver sat back down. That wasn't the kind of news Cappie was hoping to follow. Then Rusty stood up.

"I just want to share with everyone news about my polymer science project," he said.

The brothers groaned.

"Hey," said Cappie banging his gavel. "Let's give Spitter a little respect."

"Thanks Cap," Rusty continued. "As you all know I won the grant several weeks ago for my project. And that money has enabled me to finally get my self-healing wire to reconnect and stay connected. I'm in the process now of patenting my idea and if all goes well I could become a millionaire."

"Like Diddy?" Beaver asked.

Rusty looked at him confused.

"Diddy, the rapper," Beaver explained. "Puff Daddy."

Rusty continued to stare at him.

"Man Spitter, we really need to get you out more," Beaver replied.

"I think I can speak for us all when I say congratulations Rusty," said Cappie as Rusty sat back down. "We look forward to spending your millions of dollars on Kappa Tau parties."

The brothers all cheered as Rusty blushed.

"So does anyone have anything else?" asked Cappie as he scanned the room.

No one moved.

"OK, well," said Cappie taking a deep breath and clearing his throat. "I guess it's my turn to make an announcement."

"Don't get all serious on us now Cap," said Pickle with a laugh.

"Actually this is pretty serious," Cappie replied.

The room became silent and all of his brothers gave him their undivided attention.

"As I'm sure you all know," Cappie began. "Casey and I hooked up at the beginning of the semester."

None of the brothers' facial expressions changed. Even if some of them didn't know, they weren't shocked to hear it. The Cappie and Casey relationship was well known to all of the brothers.

"And as a result of that encounter," Cappie continued with a deep breath. "We are going to have a baby."

Now the facial expressions changed. Jaws dropped as everyone looked around at each other trying to see if any of them had a clue Cappie was about to drop that bomb on them. Cappie became even more nervous when none of his brothers said anything. He knew they would be shocked but he wasn't sure if this was the reaction he expected. Eventually Beaver stood up and walked up to Cappie. He held out his hand which Cappie took and wrapped his other arm around Cappie to give him a hug.

"Congratulations man," Beaver said almost in tears.

The next thing Cappie knew the entire fraternity of brothers was in front of him, all waiting for their turn to congratulate him. Rusty waited for everyone to finish before he approached Cappie.

"So how did it go with my parents?" Rusty asked.

"Surprisingly well," Cappie replied. "Your dad is a pretty awesome guy. He helped me find a house and seemed to genuinely like me."

"Yeah, Casey has always been daddy's little girl," said Rusty. "He would do just about anything for her."

"Well that gives us something in common," Cappie stated. "Because I would do anything for her also."

"Speaking of Casey," said Rusty. "What's going on between you two?"

"Let's just say things are starting to pick up," Cappie replied with a smile.

Rusty looked at him oddly.

"Cap, are you going to ask my sister to marry you?" asked Rusty sensing Cappie was fooling with him.

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves Spitter," said Cappie.

Another brother approached Cappie.

"Hey man congratulations," he said. "You're going to make a great father."

"Thanks dude," Cappie replied.

Rusty turned to Cappie.

"You see," he said. "I told you we, as your brothers, are going to be here for you no matter what."

"I know," Cappie replied looking out the window towards the ZBZ house. "I just hope your sister is getting the same love from ZBZ."

* * *

The ZBZ chapter meeting went in the same format at the KT meeting. Ashleigh stood at the front of the room going over new and old business having to do with the sorority. The meeting was somewhat bitter sweet for her. It was her last meeting in the front as president. Rebecca would be taking over at the meeting next week so Ashleigh could help transition her before she graduated. Ashleigh was about to end the meeting when Abby raised her hand.

"Yes, Abby," Ashleigh asked.

"I don't know if you noticed or not," said Abby. "But we have a candle passing tonight."

Everyone turned their heads to the living room. There on the mantel was the candle. Casey had put it there earlier in the day when most of the sisters were at class. She debated in her head whether to do the candle passing or if she would just announce it to her sisters. But in the end she decided she wouldn't have to say much with the candle passing. The fifth time around would be pretty self explanatory. The only thing she did regret was that she didn't tell Ashleigh her plans. As everyone gathered in a circle in the living room Rebecca asked if she could take over as this would be her first candle passing and Ashleigh agreed. Rebecca lit the candle and began passing it to her right as the sisters sang.

"First time around friendship," she said.

"Second time lavaliering," she said as she started the candle around for the second time.

"Third time pinning," she announced the third time around.

When the candle reached Rebecca for the fourth time some of the sisters began to get excited. They thought someone was engaged.

"Fourth time around engagement," Rebecca continued.

Everyone stared at the candle waiting patiently for someone to blow it out. Rebecca froze for a second when the candle reached her yet again.

"Fifth time pregnant," she said with a gulp.

This was it. The candle made its way to Casey's hands. She hesitated for just a second and then blew it out. The room became instantly filled with shrieks and 'oh my gods!'

"Did you count right?" asked Rebecca walking up to her.

"Yes, I counted right," Casey replied.

The room became silent. Everyone was staring at Casey.

"Yes, I'm pregnant," she announced.

She heard more gasps.

"Well then," said Rebecca wanting to pry some more. "Who is the lucky daddy?"

"It's Cappie," Casey replied.

"Wait a second," said Laura. "You and Cappie aren't even dating."

"I know," Casey replied. "It's a really long and confusing story. We're still trying to figure out where we stand as a couple. But we are both committed to raising this baby and that's all that matters right now."

All of Casey's sisters stood away from her like being pregnant was contagious. It was certainly not the reception she hoped for.

"Well, I just wanted to let all of you know before I started showing," said Casey.

Still no one moved. Casey could feel the tears swell up in her eyes.

"Thanks guys," she managed to get out sarcastically before she grabbed her jacket and ran out of the house.

"I can't believe none of you said anything," Ashleigh said as the front door slammed.

"I think we are all a little too shocked to say anything," Abby replied.

"I hope you guys can say something to her once you get over the shock then," said Ashleigh. "She's your sister and she's going through a really rough time right now. She could really use some support and you guys beat her down even more tonight by not being supportive."

"Can you blame us Ash?" asked Rebecca. "She used a candle passing to tell us she was pregnant. It probably would have gone over better if she just told us."

"Did it ever occur to you that maybe she was too afraid to just tell everyone?" Ashleigh snapped back. "I can't even imagine what she is going through right now and I'm her best friend and I've known since the beginning."

Ashleigh was becoming very frustrated with her sisters' reactions to Casey's news. Whatever happened to sisterhood?

"Casey has been one hell of a sister since she joined this sorority," Ashleigh continued. "She stood up to nationals for you Rebecca, Beth she helped get you and some of the other ex-IKIs back into ZBZ after you deactivated, and she's worked really hard this year to get ZBZ back on top. Just think about that before you guys continue to pass judgment."

Ashleigh went upstairs to her room. She, along with Casey, had enough of her sisters for the night.

* * *

**_A/N: Yay I'm glad everyone liked the last chapter. Most of you predicted right with the KT/ZBZ reactions. Now Casey is running off to the KT house to find the support she needs. You'll find out what happens in the next chapter. I put this chapter up early today so I'm thinking I'll put up chapter 19 later today so check back for another update! As always, let me know what you think!_**


	19. So Lovely

SO LOVELY

Casey walked down Greek row as fast as she could to the KT house. She hadn't let any of her tears out but she knew that once she saw Cappie and felt his arms wrap around her they would come pouring out. She walked up to the door of the KT house. She could hear guys talking and partying inside. As she opened the door everyone in the living room became silent. But as soon as she emerged in the site of the brothers and shut the door everyone cheered. Beaver came running up to her.

"Congratulations mommy!" he yelled as he picked up Casey and spun her around.

He saw the shocked look on Casey's face as he put her down.

"Oh no," he said. "Was it OK that I did that?"

Casey laughed at how worried Beaver sounded.

"It's OK Beave," Casey replied. "You're not going to hurt anything."

Beaver let out a sigh of relief. He escorted Casey into the living room where the rest of the brothers had gotten back to their drinking and talking.

"We're just having a little congratulations party for Cappie," Beaver replied.

The next thing Casey knew several KT brothers approached her to say congratulations and give her a hug. This reception made her feel one hundred times better than she did before she walked in the door. This is what she had hoped her sisters would have done for her. Eventually she made her way over to Rusty.

"Hey sis!" said Rusty excitedly. He hadn't seen Casey in a while.

"Hi Russ," Casey replied giving him a hug.

"Cap told me things went OK with mom and dad," said Rusty taking a drink of his beer.

"Yeah, mom and dad were a lot more supportive than I thought they would be," she replied. "And dad really seemed to like Cappie."

"You've got a good guy Casey," said Rusty. "Of course he's going to like him."

"Speaking of my good guy," said Casey. "I haven't seen him yet. Where is he?"

Just then Cappie came walking into the living room from the kitchen. He had a beer in his hand and instantly became the center of attention as the brothers continued to congratulate him and toast their drinks. It didn't take long for Cappie, however, to spot Casey. He politely dropped the conversation he was having with Gonzo and quickly walked over to her. He pulled her to him tightly and pressed his lips on hers for a passionate kiss. All of the brothers raised their beers in the air and cheered around them while they kissed. Cappie raised his beer in the air with his free hand as he continued to kiss the love of his life.

"I have been waiting all day to do that," he said breaking away from her.

"I could tell," she said as she smiled at him.

Cappie and Casey mingled with the KT brothers for the next hour or so. It was their impromptu party so of course they were going to stay. All of the brothers were so supportive and happy for the couple. They received numerous offerings of babysitting services which was very thoughtful. Eventually most of the brothers became drunk and it turned into more of a regular KT party than a congratulatory party for Cappie and Casey. The two of them used this opportunity to sneak up to Cappie's room.

"Your brothers are just amazing," said Casey as they walked into the room and Cappie shut the door.

"Speaking of," Cappie said sitting on the bed. "How did things go with your sisters?"

Casey sat next to him and sighed.

"Horrible," she replied.

Cappie looked shocked. He really thought the ZBZ sisterhood was stronger than that.

"No one said a word," Casey continued. "So I just ran out of there and came here."

"I'm sorry," said Cappie.

"I was sorry," stated Casey. "But after hanging out with your brothers downstairs I'm not anymore. I was on the verge of tears when I walked through that door. But once Beaver came up to me and picked me up I didn't think once about my sisters until just now."

"Beaver picked you up?" Cappie asked raising his eyebrows.

"Ha, yes he did," Casey replied. "That was the kind of reception I needed. You have some really great brothers Cap."

Cappie smiled. "Yeah, I know," he stated. "But give your sisters some time. They may just need some time to come around."

"True," Casey replied. "But whatever happens, happens. I'm not going to get too worked up about it tonight."

"That's my girl," said Cappie as he put his arm around Casey and pulled her closer to him.

Casey rested her head on Cappie's shoulder for a second before she stood up and went over to the window.

"Cap, what's going on with us?" she asked.

"What do you mean?" asked Cappie turning towards Casey.

"I don't know," Casey replied. "I just feel like things with us are so up in the air. Here we are touching and kissing and cuddling and yet we still consider us as just being friends."

"Well we're not just friends," Cappie replied as he stood up and walked over to Casey.

She was still facing the window. He came up from behind her and put his arms around her waist and rested his head on her shoulder.

"Because I want to be so much more than friends," he whispered into her ear.

Casey turned around and looked Cappie in the eyes.

"Really?" she asked as a small grin formed on her face.

"Yes," he replied. "Let's be boyfriend and girlfriend, or mom and dad, I don't care what label you put on it Case. All I know is that I just want to be with you."

Casey leaned forward and kissed Cappie on the lips.

"I want to be with you too," she said backing away.

Cappie looked at her and smiled from ear to ear. He brushed her hair behind her ear and softly kissed her lips again.

"I am so happy right now," he said to her.

"Me too," Casey replied.

Cappie wrapped his arms around her tighter as he picked her up and spun her around.

"I was jealous Beaver was the only one who got to do that to you," he said with a grin putting her down.

Casey laughed as she looked at her watch.

"I probably should be getting to sleep now," she said. "I have an early class in the morning."

"If you don't want to go back to ZBZ you're more than welcome to stay here," Cappie replied.

"I don't know Cap," Casey hesitated. "I don't have any clothes or anything."

"Not a problem," Cappie replied walking over to his dresser.

He pulled out one of his old Kappa Tau intramural shirts and a pair of shorts and handed them to her.

"You know you want to wear my letters," he said sarcastically with a wink.

Casey rolled her eyes as she took the clothes from Cappie and changed into them. At the same time Cappie also changed into shorts and a t-shirt. He laid down in the bed as he watched her finish changing her clothes.

"How do I look?" she said spinning around.

"Like my girlfriend," Cappie smiled.

Cappie lifted up the covers inviting Casey into the bed next to him. He wrapped his arm around her as she nestled her head right on his shoulder.

"Goodnight Case," he said kissing her forehead.

"Goodnight Cap," she replied quickly falling asleep.

* * *

**_A/N: So as promised.....chapter 19! Getting closer to 21 for those of you who are wondering what happens when Evan finds out!_**

**_Yay for new people reviewing! Thanks Hypey, you made my day. Any other lurkers are welcome to review, the more the merrier!_**

**_And of course I can't forget my regular reviewers....you guys are AWESOME and keep me super motivated to keep writing! Thank you!!_**


	20. Love Song

LOVE SONG

Casey spent her nights at the KT house for the next week. A small part of her was doing this because she didn't want to have to interact with her sisters. There were a few of them who finally came around and congratulated her but most of them were still in shock. But a bigger part of her staying at the KT house was to be with Cappie. The two of them were finally together now. Over the past few nights she began to become accustomed again to his smell, his touch and his love. While neither of them had said 'I love you' out loud it was a given that they really felt it towards each other. Waking up in his arms is what she needed and was starting to look forward to that for the rest of her life.

Cappie woke up on Sunday morning around ten and instantly felt something was missing. Casey wasn't in his arms. He only panicked for a second. He turned his head to the left and saw Casey sleeping soundly on her side of the bed. He assumed she must have used the bathroom at some point during the night and wasn't able to get back into his arms. She was always worried about waking him up even when he assured her that it was OK. He really didn't mind.

Cappie glanced at Casey up and down her body when his eyes rested on her stomach. She was finally starting to show. He had noticed it earlier this week but didn't want to mention it to her in case it wasn't something she was ready to deal with. But Cappie suddenly was overcome with emotion seeing the bump on her stomach. Knowing that his child, his being, was in there made life seem so much more joyous. He scooted towards Casey and kissed her softly on the cheek.

"Good morning beautiful," he said as she opened her eyes to look at him.

Casey smiled as she leaned into Cappie and kissed him on the lips.

"Good morning," she said breaking away and laying back down on the bed.

Casey saw Cappie's eyes move down towards her stomach.

"Yeah, it's no doubt I'm pregnant now," she said acknowledging the newfound bump.

Casey lifted up her shirt, exposing her bare stomach.

"Sure has really popped out here in the past couple of days," she said rubbing her hand around the bump.

"Um," Cappie started to say with a nervous tone in his voice.

"Yes, you can touch it," Casey interrupted him knowing exactly what he was going to ask.

Cappie slowly lifted his hand off of the bed and towards Casey. He looked at Casey who smiled and directed his hand down to her stomach with hers. Cappie took a deep breath, seizing the moment that was overcoming him. He imagined this was only half the feeling he would having holding his son or daughter in his arms for the first time. Cappie slowly rubbed his hand up and down Casey's stomach.

"This is just incredible," he whispered.

Casey took her hands and put them both over his. She turned to look at Cappie. She could tell his blue eyes were glossed over with emotion. This was it, the perfect timing for her to say something.

"I love you Cappie," she said, a single tear falling from her eye.

She felt Cappie's hand get heavier on her stomach as soon as she had said it. His eyes grew wider as he seemed to take in her words and really process their meaning. He looked at her staring up at him, waiting for him to return the words. He knew it was right too. He owed her the words that were about to come out of his mouth, completely sober this time around.

"I love you too Casey," he finally replied.

Casey took her hands and grabbed Cappie's face to pull him into a passionate kiss. Cappie laid back down on the bed and pulled Casey close to him.

"We finally said it," he said with a smile. "Well, sober that is."

Casey let out a little laugh.

"I'm glad you'll remember it this time," she said looking up at him.

Cappie leaned in and kissed her again. He loved kissing her. He couldn't get enough of her. Cappie looked at the clock, it was nearing eleven. As much as he wanted to stay in bed and hold Casey all day he had some fatherly duties he was instructed to fill.

"Why don't you go ahead and get dressed while I shower," he said sitting up on the edge of the bed. "I would like for us to go for a walk this morning."

Casey looked at him oddly.

"Why do you want to go for a walk all of a sudden?" she asked suspiciously.

"Stop asking questions and just get dressed," he smiled as he bent down and gave her another soft kiss.

Cappie grabbed his things and ran out of the room leaving Casey wondering what he was up to.

* * *

Around a half an hour later Cappie and Casey walked hand and hand out of the Kappa Tau house.

"Seriously Cap, what is going on?" she continued to ask.

Cappie was mute. He hadn't said a word to her since he took his shower. They began walking down Greek row. Cappie stopped to say hello to a few of his brothers who were on their way to get something to eat. Eventually Casey noticed Cappie was beginning to pull her up the path of the ZBZ house.

"Why are we going to my house?" she asked.

"I figured you would want to pick up some more clothes to bring back to the KT house," Cappie replied.

He was lying. She had a knack when it came to reading Cappie and whether he was telling the truth or a lie. Maybe it was because he never really lied to her. Nonetheless she went along with him to the front door and opened it.

"SURPRISE!!!!"

"What? Whoa," said Casey as she leaned into Cappie for support from the shock she got.

Rebecca came up to Casey and grabbed her hand.

"We would like to invite you to your baby shower," she said to Casey pulling her into the dining room.

The room was filled with pink, yellow and blue balloons and other baby decorations. There was a cake on the center table that said "Congratulations Casey and Cappie!" on it. And to the left of that was an entire table full of beautifully wrapped gifts. Casey turned around to her sisters as she began to cry.

"I, I, I don't know what to say," she said still in shock. "I love you guys."

With Rebecca's lead all of her sisters gathered around Casey for one big group hug.

"We're sorry Casey," said Laura.

"You can always count on your sisters," added Beth.

"Thank you everyone," said Casey as they backed away. "You don't know how much this means to me."

She eyed Cappie sitting on a chair in the corner of the room. He winked at her and she winked back, knowing that he had something to do with this.

Everyone was mingling and drinking punch at the shower when Rebecca found a second to pull Casey aside.

"I just wanted to apologize personally for several things," said Rebecca.

Casey looked at her oddly.

"First I want to apologize for not being much of a sister. I should have been more supportive that night, especially as the new president and I know I let you down."

Casey nodded her head. She wanted to wait to hear everything Rebecca had to apologize for before saying she forgave her.

"Second," she continued. "I just wanted to say that I'm sorry for dating Cappie last year. You were right, I did start to date him just to drive you crazy. It was pretty crazy in the end that I developed feelings for him. But I just feel that maybe you two would have been together sooner if I hadn't gone and done that."

Casey nodded again.

"And finally," she took a deep breath. "I wanted to let you know that I told Evan about you and Cappie and the baby. And I apologize ahead of time for any problems it may cause. I just couldn't keep the secret. It was eating me up inside and I had to tell him."

Casey had wondered why neither she nor Cappie had heard from Evan the past few days. Now she had her answer. She looked at Rebecca who was now waiting for her to respond.

"Thanks Bex," Casey finally said. "That really means a lot to me. And for the record, I do forgive you. I sort of dropped a bomb with the pregnancy that night. There was no wonder why everyone was shocked."

Casey and Rebecca hugged.

"Friends?" asked Rebecca pulling away.

"Friends," Casey replied.

"Good," said Rebecca. "And you let me know if you need anything. I would be happy to babysit or go shopping with you for things. Whatever you need, don't hesitate to ask."

"That's really sweet of you Bex," said Casey hugging her again.

Just then Ashleigh came up to the two of them to pull Casey away.

"Come on," she said. "It's time to play games!"

The sisters, and Cappie, played several games for the next hour including naming as many baby items they could in five minutes and 'guessing the Gerber's' where they had to guess baby food flavors correctly. Strangely enough Cappie guessed every one correctly. The last game they played was Casey's favorite. Everyone got into groups of two or three people with several magazines. They were then instructed to cut out different attributes from the magazines that they thought Cappie and Casey's baby would have. Seeing the pictures afterwards had most of them rolling on the ground laughing. One group of sisters had their baby dressed in all black leather, another made a picture of a baby sitting in the middle of a grocery store, claiming that his daddy left him there. Cappie was a little upset that the girls weren't giving him any credit with that one but he let it slide in good fun.

After eating some cake it was time to open presents. This was the most exciting for Casey because she literally had nothing for the baby at this point. She hadn't even thought about starting to shop for the baby. Every single one of the gifts was perfect. She got blankets, bottles, toys, clothes, diapers, gift certificates, and even a Gucci diaper bag from Rebecca who was diligently writing down who got what gift for Casey so she could give thank you cards later. Once everything was done Casey stood and addressed her sisters.

"I wanted to thank you guys for an amazing time this afternoon," she said. "Today you guys reminded me why I chose Zeta Beta Zeta four years ago. Our bond as sisters is so strong and I love each and every one of you. I feel like I have the support of my family now and it means so much to me."

The girls gathered around Casey one last time for a group hug.

Cappie and Casey finished bringing the last few presents up to her room after the party.

"Hey Cap," said Casey as he set the new diaper bag next to the pile of presents.

"Yes," he said walking over to her.

"Rebecca told me today she told Evan about…….everything."

"Oh," Cappie replied. "Did she say how he reacted?"

"No, not really," said Casey. "But I figured the fact that we haven't heard from him in a few days is a good indication on how he's feeling."

"Maybe he just needs some time to come around like your sisters did," Cappie replied.

Casey nodded.

"In any case," he continued. "We have an Amphora meeting coming up here soon. I'll talk to him there if we still haven't heard anything yet."

"That sounds like a plan," Casey replied.

Cappie looked at his watch.

"Well I'm going to head back to the house to play some pool with my brothers," he said. "Can I expect you later tonight?"

"Ummm," Casey thought about it for a second. "I'll have to let you know later. I may want to stay here with my sisters tonight."

"Alright," he said kissing her on the lips. "I'll miss you if you don't come though."

Casey giggled. "I'll let you know."

With that Cappie gave her one last kiss and left the room. Casey sat down on the edge of her bed and took in the events of the past week. First her and Cappie became a couple again. Then, when first recognizing her bump, they told each other the faithful 'I love yous' out loud. Now her sisters had come around and were showing her support like her parents and everyone else has previously. It was then she really came to terms that she had made the right decision about the baby. But as fast as she became happy thinking about all of the wonderful things that had happened to her, she frowned at the thought of it not lasting forever. There was sure going to be a wrench thrown into her happiness soon. She could feel it. She just didn't know when it was going to come.

* * *

**_A/N: WOW GUYS!! I can't believe the overwhelming responses/story alerts/favorite stories I got to the last chapter. Seems like a lot of people were waiting for them to finally get together!_**

**_And since my readers are AMAZING....I'm going to go ahead and load chapter 21 too! Double chapter night!_**

**_I know a lot of you wanted the ZBZ sisters to come around and I hope you liked the way it happened. Let me know what you think!_**

**_Now off to see what happens with Evan in chapter 21........_**


	21. End of the Line

END OF THE LINE

A couple of weeks had passed since the ZBZ sisters threw Casey her baby shower. Things were finally back to normal when it came to the ZBZ house. Cappie went to the Amphora meeting expecting to talk to Evan about everything but surprisingly Evan hadn't shown up. He now knew that Evan was avoiding him at all costs. He decided it was time to approach him since waiting for Evan to come around wasn't getting him anywhere. He nervously walked up to the Omega Chi house and stared at the front door for a bit. Finally, after several minutes of convincing himself just to do it, he knocked on the door. Cappie breathed a sigh of relief when Calvin answered.

"Hey Calvin," said Cappie nervously. "Is Evan here?"

Calvin looked at him strangely.

"He's here," he replied. "But I'm not sure if I should let you in the house, being a Kappa Tau and all."

"I just want to talk to him," Cappie replied.

Calvin looked around behind him to make sure the coast was clear.

"Alright," he said. "He's up in his room, upstairs, last door on the right."

"Thanks man," Cappie replied patting Calvin on the shoulder as he ran upstairs to Evan's room.

He took a deep breath and quietly knocked on the door that was cracked slightly. He could see Evan at his desk doing some homework.

"Come in," said Evan turning to face the door.

Evan froze when he saw Cappie.

"What the hell are you doing here?" he asked coldly.

"Dude, you've been avoiding me," said Cappie as he walked in the room and shut the door.

"And for a very good reason," Evan replied. "How could you go off and do something like this?"

"Like what?" asked Cappie in an angry tone.

"Like getting Casey pregnant," Evan replied. "Are you stupid? Why in the hell didn't you use a condom or something man?"

"Look," said Cappie. "I didn't come here to argue about what happened between Casey and me. What is done is done. I came here to figure out why, because of what happened, we can't be friends all of a sudden."

"Think about it Cap," said Evan glaring at him.

"Because you still have feelings for her?" Cappie asked already knowing the answer to that question.

"Of course," Evan replied. "We both agreed that we still had feelings for her. And that is why we agreed that neither of us could be with her. Don't-"

"Do you think I planned on getting her pregnant just so I could be with her?" Cappie bursted out interrupting Evan.

Evan just raised his eyebrow at Cappie.

"Oh my god dude," said Cappie throwing his arms in the air. "You couldn't be further from the truth."

"Then why didn't you have her get rid of the baby?" asked Evan. "That would have made things a lot easier."

"For who? You?" snapped Cappie.

Evan didn't respond.

"So if you're so madly in love with her then why are you dating Rebecca? Why are you just going on pretending like she means nothing to you?" Cappie asked.

"The same reason why you did it when you dated Rebecca, and Lana and any other girl you've dated since Casey," Evan replied slamming his book shut.

"So you're using Rebecca?" Cappie asked feeling a little sorry for Rebecca since he had pretty much done the same thing.

"Not exactly," Evan replied. "I care about Rebecca. But I love Casey."

Evan's words hit Cappie like a ton of bricks.

"You will never love her like I love her," he sneered.

"Yeah, because you trapped her into loving you," said Evan as he began to raise his voice. "Without that baby you and Casey would just be plain old friends. Nothing more."

"You're wrong again dude," Cappie replied. "Why can't you just accept the fact that she's with me now? Why does everything always have to be some sort of competition?"

"Come on Cap," said Evan even louder. "Casey has always been the competition. From the time you slept with her on rush night to the time you tried to prevent me from giving her my letters. It's always been a competition and I've always won."

Cappie walked over to Evan, his hands beginning to clench with fury.

"Well this time you lost asshole," he said getting into Evan's face.

"You wanna bet?" asked Evan with a smirk on his face.

Cappie didn't respond, he just stepped closer to Evan.

"Why don't you ask the love of your life what she did cooped up in the ZBZ house all alone on Thanksgiving night last semester?" continued Evan increasing his smile. "Oh wait, that's right, she wasn't alone."

Cappie couldn't take it any longer. He brought his right hand back and took the biggest swing he could right at Evan's head. Evan fell back onto his bed, blood beginning to rush out of his nose. He stumbled slightly but eventually managed to get up onto his feet.

"Get the hell out of my house," he said.

It took Evan all of the self control he had in him to not hit Cappie back. But he knew that wasn't the way this was going to end. Cappie gave Evan one last glare and turned out towards the door. Evan followed him all the way to the front door making sure he left the house.

"Whoa Evan, what happened?" asked Tripp as Evan and Cappie reached the front door.

"Don't worry about it Tripp," Evan replied as Cappie walked out the door. "Hitting him back isn't going to give me the win. I'll win when I get back what is rightfully mine."

Cappie turned around and glared at Evan one last time as he walked down the steps of the Omega Chi house. Evan just smiled an evil smile back at him and slammed the door.

* * *

**_A/N: So the story can't be all fluff right?? Had to get some drama in here!_**

**_What did you guys think of this chapter?_**

**_Keep the reviews coming!_**


	22. Go

GO

After his fight with Evan Cappie left campus and went to the Lite and Easy. He didn't drink a whole lot but played numerous games of pool to try and sort out the thoughts going through his head. Casey had been blowing up his phone for most of the day but he neglected to answer any of her calls and texts. How could she sleep with Evan? Knowing this bit of information made Cappie leery of Casey's real motives now. She poured her heart out to him at the End of the World party; she wanted to be with him. But then three weeks later she is in bed with Evan? The thought of Evan's hands all over her made Cappie cringe.

And then there was his friendship with Evan. How dare Evan get all upset that he slept with her when Evan had done it just weeks before him? Then he became mad that the two of them kept it from him. Cappie was becoming more furious the more he thought about the situation. He decided it was time to head home and punch a few walls, or Evan's face again. Either one would do, but he would certainly get more satisfaction out of the latter.

Cappie walked into the Kappa Tau house and slammed the door shut behind him.

"Cappie!" said Beaver from the living room.

"Where have you been?" asked a familiar female voice.

Cappie glanced over to see Casey sitting there with Beaver, probably waiting for him to return home.

"I needed to think," was all he said as he began to walk up the stairs.

He heard Casey get up and follow him. Cappie continued to walk. He didn't have the strength to turn around and look her in the eye right now. He got to his room and turned around in the doorway before letting her in.

"If I were you," he stated softly and coldly. "I would stay away from me for the night. If you want to talk now I may say something that I will regret."

Casey looked at him, a hurt expression overcame her face.

"What did I do?" she asked him innocently.

Cappie just closed his eyes and shook his head.

"Well I want to talk now then," she said as she pushed past him and went into the room. "This will drive me crazy all night if we don't at least talk about it now."

Cappie slowly shut the door and turned around to look at Casey. She looked into his eyes. They were dark, nothing near the sparkling blue she was used to seeing.

"So I went to talk to Evan," started Cappie.

He looked at her body language when he said Evan's name. He noticed a little slouch in her shoulders, it was all he needed to know if Evan was really telling the truth or not.

"And he told me a very interesting story," Cappie continued bitterly. "He told me that the two of you shared a pretty intimate night on Thanksgiving last semester."

Casey sat on the edge of the bed as if her legs wouldn't hold her up anymore. It was like all the life had been sucked out of her.

"So it is true," Cappie stated reading her body language again.

Casey just slightly nodded her head yes, not knowing how to respond.

"God Casey," said Cappie as he began to pace around the room. "I thought you loved me. I thought--"

"Cappie that was last semester," said Casey interrupting him. "You rejected me. What was I supposed to do? Wait around for you forever?"

Cappie just stared at her, a blank expression on his face.

"I waited around forever for you," he said softly looking at the ground.

Casey opened her mouth to respond but nothing came out. Cappie was right. He didn't date anyone for months after the two of them broke up freshman year. He was always trying to get her back. And here she was doing the exact thing she did freshman year: going to Evan. It wasn't like Evan was some sort of rebound after Cappie had rejected her, she had feelings for both of them at the time. But out of all the guys in the world, Evan was probably the one she should have stayed the farthest from.

There was a long silence between the two of them. The only noise that filled the room were Cappie's shoes on the floor from his continued pacing back and forth.

"So you do have feelings for him?" Cappie finally asked.

"I did," she replied. "Evan and I have a lot of history. Just like you and I have a lot of history. Evan and I tried dating again but realized right before Christmas break things just weren't what they used to be."

"You two dated again?" Cappie yelled, increasing the speed of his pacing.

Casey certainly just put her foot in her mouth. She assumed Evan had told him the whole story. She finally just nodded her head yes.

"Well this just keeps getting better and better!" said Cappie throwing his arms into the air. "You two went behind my back! Let's play little old Cappie for a fool. He'll never figure it out. We'll tell him once we send out the wedding invitations."

"Oh come on," Casey said not anywhere interested in Cappie's sarcasm. "Evan and I both agreed to keep things low key because we weren't sure what would come of it. And in the end nothing did come of it so we felt like no one needed to know."

"You had sex with him Casey!" yelled Cappie. "You let that jerk touch your body, you let him be with you, you let him win."

"I am not some kind of prize," Casey said standing up. "I had feelings for the both of you. I needed to figure out where my heart really belonged."

"And how do you know it doesn't belong to Evan?" Cappie snapped.

"Because I love you," Casey replied walking up to Cappie and taking his hands. "I've always loved you."

"No," said Cappie breaking his hands away. "I'm not going to fall for this again. I'm not going to get my heart broken again."

"What are you talking about? I'm with you now," pleaded Casey. "You're the one I want to be with."

"Only because you're the one who's carrying _my_ child," Cappie said turning to glare at Casey. "If that were Evan's child you would be with him right now wouldn't you? If he got you pregnant before Christmas break nothing would have ever happened between the two of us so yeah, it's hard for me to believe that you truly love me."

"This is not the time to be discussing hypothetical situations," Casey stated.

"Don't talk to me about hypothetical questions," Cappie snapped. "According to you, a hypothetical question led you to realize you wanted to keep the baby."

Casey stepped back, shocked at Cappie's last remark.

"How did you know about that?" she asked.

"I heard you talking to your mom," Cappie replied. "And hearing you say that is what made me want to be with you again. I really thought that things were different. I thought that you finally truly loved me."

"I do love you," Casey said grabbing for his hand again.

"No," Cappie said moving his hand so she couldn't get it. "You love whatever guy fits better into your hypothetical situations. And if that's the case then I suggest you leave because I thought what we had was real. I was wrong."

"How could you say what we have isn't real?" Casey said as tears started to run down her face. "This baby is very real."

"Yes, the baby is very real," Cappie replied. "Our love isn't."

Silence filled the room. The only thing Cappie could hear was the occasional sniffle from Casey. He was surprised that for once her crying wasn't affecting him. He was hurt. He felt like his entire world was crumbling before him. But he couldn't help but be upset. To find out the girl who claimed him to be the love of her life slept with one of his best friends was gut wrenching. He felt like he wanted to throw up. He knew that deep down Casey did love him, she's always loved him. But the fact that she jumped into bed with Evan Chambers just three weeks after she poured her heart out to him was making him doubt that love.

Cappie was so wrapped up in his thoughts that he didn't even notice Casey had left the room. He was there alone just like he had been many times before. Alone with his heart broken into a million pieces on the floor around him. Why on earth would he allow himself to be set up like this again by Casey? Why did she always do this to him?

* * *

**_A/N: Hmmmmm.....I think I'm going to post two chapters again today since I had several people request two. So I'll write something at the end of the next chapter :0)_**


	23. Lonely Again

LONELY AGAIN

"Casey are you OK?" Casey heard Rusty shout to her as she ran out of the Kappa Tau house.

She didn't answer. She just kept walking. She didn't want to have to explain herself to anyone right now. The only person in the world she wanted to try and explain things to wasn't being anywhere near rational at the moment. The fling between her and Evan happened before her and Cappie had sex. Hell it happened even before Christmas break. And it was nothing significant to her. She didn't even count the two weeks Evan and her shared as a relationship. It was purely about sex. She was supposed to go home Thanksgiving for a no strings attached booty call with her ex-boyfriend Derrick. But when her parents decided to go to Maui she stayed at CRU instead. Evan came over and helped her with a Thanksgiving dinner she threw for the people left on campus. One thing led to another and the next thing she knew she was laying naked next to him in bed the next morning. It was kind of ironic when she thought about it, considering the exact same situation happened with Cappie. But Evan stayed with her the next morning. He made her breakfast and they spent the rest of the day watching movies and cuddling in bed. Cappie ran away the next morning. He avoided her for weeks. As much as they had similarities, the two situations were completely different.

Casey was about a block away from the ZBZ house when she heard someone behind her call her name. She couldn't quite make it out but could tell it was a male voice and prayed to god she would see Cappie running after her when she turned around. But it wasn't. Of all people it was Evan running after her.

"Evan I think you're the last person I want to see right now," said Casey turning back around and starting to walk away.

"Come on Casey," pleaded Evan. "Let me at least explain myself."

Casey stopped and slowly turned back around to face Evan.

"I don't think there is much you can explain," she replied. "You pretty much just ruined any chance of a relationship between Cappie and me. So now I get to raise this baby as a single mother scheduling visits with Cappie every Wednesday night and every other weekend. I can't wait."

"Now don't be so dramatic on me," said Evan approaching her. "Just because Cappie doesn't want to be with you doesn't mean you can't find a guy who would be more than willing to help you raise the child. You're a beautiful girl Casey. There are plenty of other fish in the sea."

"I'm not sure if I want any of the other fish," Casey replied sitting down on a bench near the sidewalk. "Everything was so perfect with Cappie. And then he found out about us and all of his insecurities came flooding back."

"Do you really want a guy like that?" asked Evan sitting next to her. "A guy who is always going to doubt your motives because he's afraid of having his heart broken?"

"How can I blame him for feeling like that though?" asked Casey. "After all of the times I broke his heart, it's about time he did it to mine."

Casey started to have tears fall down her cheeks again.

"Case," said Evan putting his arm around her and rubbing her shoulder. "You don't deserve to be hurt like this. You didn't do anything wrong. What happened between you and I was well before anything happened between you and Cappie. There is no need for him to be upset. It was in the past."

"I know," Casey replied. "It just really hurts because I thought he truly loved me."

"Casey," said Evan taking her hand, noticing her vulnerability at the moment. "You deserve so much better than Cappie. You deserve someone who can provide for you and the baby. Someone who has goals and knows what he wants to do with his life."

Evan paused.

"Someone like me," he finally said.

"Evan…." Casey trailed off.

"You know I've never stopped loving you Case," he continued. "Those two weeks we spent together were amazing. The sex was incredible."

"Maybe it was for you," Casey said. "But I ended it because things didn't feel the same for me."

"But things are different now," Evan replied. "Now that you have a baby you need someone there to help you and provide for you. I can be that person. I can be there for you now and always."

Casey looked down at Evan touching her hand and quickly pulled it away.

"I'm sorry Evan," she replied. "But the only person who I truly want to provide and help me with the baby is the father. And if things don't work out with him then I can very well do this on my own. I don't need your help."

"And what are you going to do if he doesn't want you?" Evan asked bitterly.

"It doesn't matter so much if he wants me anymore," Casey replied. "All that matters is that he wants to be there for the baby. The baby is more important than my feelings right now."

"It shouldn't be Casey," Evan replied again putting his hand on hers. "You should matter just as much as the baby does. You're going to become sad and depressed if you put the baby before your own happiness."

Casey shook her head, tears still slowly falling down her face. As much as she hated to admit it, Evan was right. She was going to be miserable putting the baby before her own feelings. But that was just something she was going to have to do. Didn't all mothers do this for their children? Suddenly Casey felt Evan's hand behind her neck and pulled her close to him. Their lips touched and he began kissing her.

"What are you doing?" she asked angrily pulling away from him.

"I'm trying to show you that I'm the guy you're supposed to be with Casey," he replied. "I'm the one who can be there to love you and support you, putting you as much of a priority as the baby."

"I'm sorry Evan," said Casey standing up quickly. "We had our chances. It's just not what I'm looking for right now. You're not Cappie."

With that Casey began to walk off down the sidewalk. Evan continued to sit on the bench watching her walk when he suddenly saw her trip on a crack and fall hard onto the cement below.

"Oh my god," he said as he quickly got up and went up to her. "Are you OK?"

Casey was clenching her wrist and then moved her hand down to her stomach.

"I, I think I broke my wrist," she said as she began to sob. "And something just doesn't feel right."

"I'll go get my car," said Evan turning and running down the road as quickly as he could.

He was back less than a minute later.

"Come on," he said helping Casey up off of the ground. "I'm taking you to the hospital."

Evan helped her into the car. Casey could tell something was definitely wrong with her wrist; it was starting to swell and bruise badly. But her wrist was really the least of her worries. She turned to look at Evan as he began to drive. She saw the terrified look on his face also. Both of them just hoped there was nothing wrong with the baby.

* * *

**_A/N: OK so I left you guys with quite a cliffhanger....sorry about that! But the next chapter will be up tomorrow so hopefully the wait isn't too unbearable._**

**_As always, let me know what you think in the reviews.......I think we may break over 100 with these new chapters. Woo Hoo!_**


	24. Wondering Why

WONDERING WHY

A few nurses came out with a wheelchair as Evan had approached the emergency room door. They assisted Casey out of the car and took her inside to be examined. Evan quickly parked the car and went inside.

"Can you tell me where Casey Cartwright is?" he asked the secretary.

The secretary looked at a paper beside her.

"She's off to x-ray right now. You'll have to just wait in the waiting room for her," she replied.

Evan shoved his hands in his pockets as he slowly walked into the waiting room. He found a chair in the corner away from the numerous sick people waiting to be seen. He was not pleased with the events for the day. He didn't want to be fighting with Cappie and Casey but he was just so hurt by them. Cappie knew how much Casey still meant to him. But he quickly calmed down when he realized that he had done the same thing before Christmas break. He had slept with Casey, Cappie just didn't know about it. That's why the situations were different.

But being rejected by Casey is what hurt the most tonight. He thought being there to comfort her when Cappie rejected her yet again is what she needed. He patiently had waited outside of the Kappa Tau house, seizing his opportunity when he saw her run out crying. But in the end she rejected him. End the end she just wants Cappie. Cappie finally won. He felt like a complete jerk thinking about the innocent baby that was involved. Here he was trying to break up the baby's parents for his own satisfaction. Didn't the child deserve to have both of his parents together if that is what they truly wanted? Evan buried his head in his hands figuring out what he needed to do to make this right.

He pulled out his phone and scrolled down to Cappie's number. He took a deep breath as he pressed the call button. The phone rang several times and eventually went to voicemail. Instantly he regretted that he had called him from his cell phone. How could he even expect Cappie to answer a phone call from him in this situation? Evan didn't leave a voicemail because he knew that Cappie wouldn't be listening to it anytime soon.

He opened his phone back up and decided to try and send a text message instead, praying that Cappie hadn't turned off his phone.

_Casey had a fall. We are at the hospital. You should come. She needs you._

Evan was pleased with what he wrote. It was to the point and hopefully was the start to repairing the damage he caused with their relationship. It only took Cappie a second to respond.

_This better not be some sort of joke. I'm on my way._

Evan was going to text back that he was completely serious but decided against it. He didn't have to try to assure Cappie of anything being that he was telling the truth.

Suddenly Evan caught a glance of the nurses wheeling Casey down the hall back to her room. He stood up and rushed over to her.

"Is everything OK?" he asked walking along her being pushed on the gurney.

"I'm not sure," Casey said in a very groggy voice.

"We gave her some pain medicine," the nurse stated. "You should go back to the waiting room. We'll come and get you when she is ready for visitors."

With that they wheeled Casey into exam room four and shut the door. Evan stood outside staring at the door for a second, wanting to burst in there and be by her side. But his mind quickly decided against it. He wasn't the person who was supposed to be next to her holding her hand. Cappie was.

Evan returned to the waiting room to find it a little less crowded. They must have taken more people back to be seen. He plopped down into one of the chairs. He knew Cappie would come bursting through those doors any second. He was trying to figure out what he was going to say to him.

Sure enough minutes later a frantic Cappie came running through the emergency room doors.

"Cap!" Evan called to him before he could get to the secretary.

"Where is she? What is going on?" asked Cappie as he walked up to Evan.

"She just got done getting x-rays and they had her on some sort of pain medicine. That's all I know," Evan replied.

"And how in the hell did this happen?" asked Cappie, almost yelling. "Did you do this?"

"No," Evan replied. "Well not intentionally or anything."

Cappie glared at him. "This sounds very intentional," he sneered. "Magically after leaving my house you are somehow near or around Casey to be a hero and take her to the hospital. So you could be her knight and shining armor."

"That's not how things happened," said Evan trying to defend himself as he sat in one of the waiting room chairs.

Cappie just stood in front of him, towering over him. Evan could see the anger and pain in his eyes. His fists were beginning to clench.

"Just hear me out," Evan continued. "Please."

Cappie lessened the grip on his hands and sat down in the chair across from Evan.

"Yes, I was a douche and waited outside your house for Casey to come running out. She was crying and I went after her to comfort her."

"How noble of you," said Cappie rolling his eyes.

"I told her that I loved her, told her that I could be the one to help support her and the baby," Evan continued ignoring Cappie's last comment. "And then I kissed her."

"You did what?!" Cappie yelled standing up from his chair and again stood tall in front of Evan.

Some of the people left in the waiting room turned their heads to stare at the two who looked like they were about to fight.

"You're lucky you're at a hospital dude," said Cappie through his clenched teeth. "Because you're going to need a doctor after I get done beating the shit out of you."

"Whoa, I'm not done," said Evan placing his hand on Cappie's chest. "Casey rejected me."

Cappie backed away from Evan slightly, prompting him to continue.

"She loves you. She told me that I wasn't you," Evan continued. "You won."

Cappie sat back down in the chair across from Evan, unclenching his fists yet again.

"Seriously?" he finally managed to ask.

"Yes," Evan replied with a nod. "And from the looks of it you're just as invested in her as she is you."

"Man I really blew it tonight didn't I?" Cappie sighed.

"That doesn't mean you can't fix it dude," said Evan standing up. "She's in exam room four."

Cappie stood up and was about the run towards Casey's room when he turned around.

"Ev-" he began to say.

"Don't worry about it," said Evan with a small smile. "I'm sorry. This was blown way out of proportion. She's all yours. You don't have to worry about me."

"Thanks," said Cappie walking back over to Evan and giving him a hug. "Still friends?" he asked.

Evan stared at him for a second and nodded.

"Still friends," he replied. "Tell Casey I hope everything is OK."

"You're not staying?" Cappie asked.

"No," Evan replied. "It's really not my place. This is something between you two."

"Alright," said Cappie. "But promise me something Ev."

Evan looked up at Cappie.

"Promise me you'll either be fully commited to Rebecca or just let her go," said Cappie. "She's a good friend of mine and I don't want to see her get hurt."

"No problem dude," said Evan. "I'm actually off to go see her now. We have a lot of things to discuss."

"Good luck," Cappie replied as Evan began to walk away.

Cappie continued to stare at Evan as he walked out the doors of the emergency room. He wondered how he was able to forgive Evan so quickly. Maybe it was because he valued Evan as a friend again. Maybe it was because he didn't want to start their fighting and feuding all over again. But he took a deep breath and realized that those really weren't the reasons. The real reason was that he finally heard Evan admit that he had won. The fact that Casey rejected him was something he had waited to hear for what seemed like years. Casey. Cappie realized that she was the reason why he was there that night. He needed to find her. He needed make sure everything was OK with her and the baby. He needed to make sure everything was OK with the two of them.

* * *

**_A/N: So since I got so many reviews about Cappie and Casey getting back together and the baby being alright I'll post another chapter for you guys so you don't have to keep wondering._**

**_Off to chapter 25............._**


	25. Trust Me

TRUST ME

Cappie stood in front of exam room four wondering if he should knock on the door or just walk in. He didn't have to answer that question as a nurse from inside opened the door and ran into him as she walked out.

"Who are you?" she asked.

"I'm Cappie," he replied. "Casey's, um, boyfriend."

Yes, Cappie hesitated when he decided what to label his current relationship with Casey. After all they never really ended things earlier that night. It was just an argument. He didn't think they really broke up.

"I thought that other boy who was here was her boyfriend," the nurse stated confused.

"No, just a friend," Cappie replied.

He looked at the nurse trying to show her how anxiously he wanted into the room.

"Well she's sleeping," said the nurse with a little hesitation. "But you can go ahead and go in."

Cappie smiled at her as they traded places and he went into Casey's room. He observed the surroundings as he first walked in. She was in the bed sleeping, her left arm resting on a pillow beside her. She had a pink cast up to her elbow. She was hooked up to an IV for fluids. And then there was something faint that he could hear in the background:_ boom_ _boom boom boom boom boom_. The baby. It was the baby's heartbeat. It was strong and was like music to Cappie's ears knowing that the baby was still OK.

He pulled a chair up to the right side of Casey's bed. He took her right hand into his and pulled it up so he could kiss the back of her hand. She slowly opened her eyes and turned to look at him. The shocked expression she got on her face when she realized it was him made Cappie smile.

"What are you doing here?" she whispered.

"Evan called," he replied. "He told me what happened."

"About how I'm a klutz and tripped over a crack in the sidewalk?" she asked.

"Something like that," Cappie replied. "What did the doctors say?"

"Well I broke my wrist," she said holding her left hand up. "Will probably be in this cast for the next three weeks."

"And the baby?" Cappie asked with a small gulp.

"The baby is fine," she replied. "They just want to keep me here for a few hours and monitor the heartbeat and make sure nothing happens."

"What a relief," he stated. "I don't know what I would have done if something serious had happened to either one of you."

"Yeah," was all Casey replied.

"Case, about tonight," Cappie began.

"Evan kissed me," Casey blurted out looking like she was about the cry.

"I know," Cappie said softly. "He told me."

Casey looked towards the other side of the room. She didn't know how to respond.

"He also told me how you rejected him," Cappie continued. "He told me that you said you still loved me. That you always loved me."

Casey turned back around to face Cappie.

"It's true," Casey replied. "But I'm not sure if that is enough anymore. I'm even more scared after what happened tonight."

"Scared of what?" asked Cappie as he gave her a confused look.

"Scared of your insecurities," she replied. "I'm sorry, I know that I have hurt you so many times in the past. It's no wonder why you have such a hard time trusting and believing me now."

"I do trust you," said Cappie, a noticeable pain in his voice.

"No, you don't," Casey replied. "If you did then you would have trusted the fact that I didn't have feelings for Evan anymore. If you trusted me you would have been able to realize what happened between Evan and I was in the past and it has nothing to do with our future."

Cappie looked at the floor. He didn't know how to respond. He didn't know how he was ever going to win this battle. Casey took her hand away from Cappie's and set it on her stomach. He looked up at her, shocked that she had moved away from him.

"I think it's your time to leave," she said again looking towards the other side of the room.

Cappie slowly stood up and began to walk towards the door. He opened the door slightly as he looked back at her. She was lying in the hospital bed so helpless. And she was starting to cry. This time her crying affected him.

"No," he said shutting the door and walking back over to her. "I'm not leaving."

"Cap, don't make this harder than it already is," she said looking at him, tears streaming down her face.

"It doesn't have to be hard," he replied. "We love each other, we are going to have a child together. Why can't we just be together?"

"Because you don't trust me Cap," Casey replied. "How can I start my life with someone who I know deep down doesn't trust me?"

Cappie took a deep breath and shut his eyes.

"I don't know Case, I don't know what to say, I don't know what I can do," he said now staring at the ground again. "I just don't want this to end. Things were so perfect. I finally had what I always wanted in life. And that is you, a future with you."

Casey finally turned to look at Cappie as he looked up at her. She was shocked to see that he was now crying. She hadn't seen him show this kind of emotion since she told him she was pregnant. And she could understand his reaction in that situation. But this situation was different. This time he was crying for her. She reached down for his hand and squeezed it. She then took his hand and placed it on her stomach. Everything felt so much more real to Cappie, feeling her stomach and hearing the heartbeat softly in the background.

"Let me show you that I can trust you," he said. "Let me prove it to you for the next few weeks, few months, few years. I don't care how long it takes."

Cappie looked down at his hand on her stomach and began to rub the bump up and down.

"I love this baby, I love you," he continued. "I want us to spend forever together. I never want to lose either of you."

"I don't want to lose you either Cap," said Casey with a sniffle.

Cappie immediately stood up and plunged his lips towards Casey's. She moved her hand to caress his face as she kissed him softly, their tears mixing together as they deepened the kiss.

"I love you Casey," said Cappie as he backed away from her briefly. "And I'm sorry. Nothing like this will ever happen again."

"I know," she nodded. "I love you too."

They kissed again as Cappie crawled up into the bed next to her. He wrapped his arms around her tightly as she nestled into his chest. Cappie closed his eyes and pictured this same situation about five months from now. The two of them would be in the hospital where their child would soon be born. He squeezed her even tighter at this thought knowing that he was right. He did want to spend forever with her.

* * *

**_A/N: Hmmmm.....is Cappie thinking marriage soon????_**

**_Since I love love love all my readers I'm making it a three chapter day!!!!!! Exciting huh????_**

**_I expect lots of reviews to let me know what you guys think!_**

**_Off to chapter 26................_**


	26. Speechless

SPEECHLESS

The morning of April 29th rolled around quickly. Casey had been taking it easy the past week, mostly by Cappie's insistence. Her wrist hurt a lot. And even though the doctors told her the pain medicine they gave her was safe for the baby she just couldn't bring herself to take it. So she relied on the old remedies of rest, ice and elevation to try and relieve the pain she was having. And cuddling with Cappie of course. There was something about his masculine hands around her holding her tight that just made any pain she was feeling go away.

She woke up in his arms on the 29th like she had done most mornings. She began to stir but he just pulled her closer to him.

"No," he said with a raspy voice. "It's not time to get up yet."

"Cap," Casey giggled. "We have to get up eventually. My appointment is at eleven."

Cappie glanced at the clock.

"And it's only nine-thirty," he said with a smile as he pulled her closer. "We have plenty of time."

Casey moved around so she was face to face with Cappie. She gave him a soft kiss.

"Mmmmmmm," he moaned softly. "I'll never get tired of morning kisses from you my love."

"So," said Casey as she laid her head back down on Cappie's chest. "We haven't discussed at all whether we want to find out whether we are having a boy or a girl today."

"Well what do you think?" asked Cappie who already knew what his answer was.

"I kind of think I do want to know," said Casey. "What about you."

"Well it's settled then," he said. "Because I want to know too."

"That's it?" asked Casey. "Did we seriously just make that decision that quickly?"

Cappie smiled as he moved Casey so he could look into her eyes.

"That's what makes us so perfect," he said brushing the soft blond hair off of her shoulder. "We're relatively in sync with each other."

"Yeah, we are," said Casey smiling back at Cappie.

He leaned in and began to kiss her. He began to get a little shocked when she deepened the kiss and began to rub her hand along the outside of his shorts. He began letting his hands explore her body when his cell phone rang.

"Ugh, hold that thought," he grunted picking up his phone. "Hello?"

"Hi honey!" Casey heard a female voice say.

"Mom," Cappie replied. "How are you? I haven't heard from you in a while."

"Yes well we were out in the forest camping for a while," his mother replied. "There were no phones near us for miles."

"Well I'm glad you finally got to call," said Cappie. "I-"

"Oh and you can keep this phone number son," interrupted his mom. "We now have these cell phones that are solar powered. So as long as the sun is up we should be available!"

"That's great mom," said Cappie with a smile.

"Your father wants to say hi," his mom said handing his dad the phone.

"Hey son!" said his dad. "How are things going? Still running that fraternity out there?"

"Yeah, I'm still the president," said Cappie knowing that his father deep down wished he never joined the fraternity. He always thought it was a young adult version of a cult.

"And how about your grades?" his dad asked. "How are you doing in school?"

"Actually dad I wanted to talk to you and mom about that," said Cappie. "Is there any way you can have mom listen in too?"

"Sure, I'll just put you on speaker phone," his dad replied hitting the button.

Cappie did the same on his phone so Casey could hear loud and clear.

"Can you both hear me?" Cappie asked.

"Yes we can," his mother replied.

"OK, well," Cappie began. "I wanted to let you guys know that I'm graduating this semester. The graduation ceremony is May 8th and I would love for you guys to be there."

"You're really graduating?" asked his mom.

"I thought you still had another year or two," stated his dad.

"I thought I did," Cappie replied. "But after meeting with some advisors here I realized that I had enough credits to graduate with a general education degree."

"Well that's great honey," said his mom. "We'll try to make it to your graduation. But you know it's only a couple of weeks away. I'm not sure where your father and I will be."

Cappie's heart sank to the ground. He was really hoping his parents were going to be there to cheer him on.

"Well you guys made it quite hard for me to be able to tell you," Cappie argued. "I had no way of getting a hold of you."

"I know son," said his dad. "Like your mom said, we'll try our best to make it. We just can't promise anything right now. You never know where the wind will take us."

"Alright," said Cappie solemnly.

He looked at Casey who sat next to him with her arm around his waist and her head on his shoulder. She knew he was hurt by his parent's response.

"Well honey we're sorry this is so short but we are on our way out to a protest," said his mom. "It was really good to talk to you."

"No wait," said Cappie anxiously. "There is something else I have to tell you guys. Something that kind of influenced my decision to graduate this semester."

"Did you meet a girl?" his dad asked.

"Well, sort of," Cappie replied.

"Oh I'm so excited," exclaimed his mother. "When is the wedding?"

Cappie laughed. "There is no wedding mom," he said. "At least not yet."

Cappie looked at Casey who smiled at him as she squeezed him a little tighter.

"So who is this new girl?" his dad asked.

"She's not exactly new dad," Cappie replied. "It's Casey."

"Casey….Casey," he could hear his dad say her name over and over trying to rack his brain to remember who she was.

"Oh is she that girl from your freshman year?" his mom finally asked.

"Yes, that's her," Cappie replied.

"Oh honey that's great," his mom exclaimed. "I know how much you loved her."

"Yeah, she's pretty great," Cappie replied again smiling at Casey.

"Well if she encouraged you to graduate then she's a-ok in my book," said his dad.

"Thanks dad," Cappie replied. "But she isn't my only reason for graduating."

"What else is going on then?" his dad asked.

Cappie took a deep breath, nervous about how his parents were going to react once he dropped the bomb on them.

"Casey is pregnant," he said. "With our baby."

The phone was completely silent. Cappie had to hit one of the buttons so the screen would light up again to make sure he was still connected to his parents.

"Mom? Dad?" he finally said. "Did you hear me?"

"Yes, yes, we heard you," his dad finally replied.

Still there was silence on the phone.

"Can someone please say something?" Cappie asked as he started to get a little choked up.

"Son, are you sure the baby is yours," his dad finally asked.

"Yes," Cappie replied. "Positive."

"Well that's certainly big news," said his dad.

"Mom?" asked Cappie. "You haven't said anything."

"Um," said Cappie's dad clearing his throat. "Your mother went inside."

Casey could feel Cappie's entire confidence shoot out of him as his body seemed to grow heavier against hers.

"Dad," said Cappie fighting back tears. "Aren't you going to congratulate me or something?"

He heard his dad take a deep breath into the phone.

"Son, a baby is a big task that you are about to take on," he said. "You know your mother and I believe children should only be born between two people who love each other and are planning to spend the rest of their lives together. You're only in college. There is no way you could know any of that stuff right now. We're disappointed in you."

Cappie's heart sank as he let the tears flow from his eyes.

"Casey and I are in love dad," he pleaded. "We will get married someday."

"That's great son," said his father. "You're mother and I wish you luck with that."

"So this is it?" asked Cappie. "You're just going to push me aside because I did something that you don't necessarily agree with? What happened to free-spirit and non-conformity?"

"Having a baby just doesn't fit into those categories," his dad replied.

"Dad, I need you and mom," said Cappie through his tears. "Please don't leave me like this."

"We're not leaving you son," said his dad. "You mother and I have to talk about things. We'll call you in a few weeks."

"A few weeks?" said Cappie as he stood up and walked over to the window. "I guess that means you won't be at graduation."

"Please just let your mother and I talk. You have to realize the amount of life changing information you told us today. It's too much for us to process right now."

"Alright dad, whatever you say," said Cappie somewhat bitterly.

"We'll talk later," his dad said.

"Bye," said Cappie as he slammed the phone shut, not letting his father say another word.

Casey stood up and walked over to Cappie. She put her hand on his back and began to rub it. He then turned around and collapsed into her arms. He was sobbing. Casey wrapped her arms around him tightly. He had been her rock for so long. It was now her turn to be his.

"I'm so sorry," she said squeezing him as tightly as she could.

"I thought they would understand," he said through his tears. "I thought of all the people in the world my parents would be the coolest about this news. They've always been the most loving and caring parents no matter what I did. No matter how much I screwed up."

"They're just shocked," said Casey. "Just give them a little time and they'll come around."

"I'm not so sure," said Cappie as he broke away from Casey and sat back down on the bed.

Casey felt helpless. She wanted to say something to Cappie that would make things better but had no idea what to say. She went over and stood in front of him.

"Well I love you," she said. "And even though Cappie junior isn't in this world yet I know he loves you just as much and if not more."

Cappie looked at her and gave her a half smile.

"We're a family now," Casey continued. "You, me and little Cappie. It's just going to be the three of us for the rest of our lives. Even if your current family doesn't support you, your future family does, and always will."

Cappie's smile grew bigger as he stared into Casey's eyes. He put his hands on the sides of her waist and pulled her closer to him.

"We really are a family now aren't we?" he asked leaning in closer to her.

"Of course," she replied. "We always will be."

Cappie leaned in and kissed her softly.

"Thanks Case," he said breaking away. "I really needed to hear that."

"It's the truth," she smiled at him.

His kissed her one last time as his hands rubbed the sides of her stomach.

"Speaking of the baby," he said looking at the clock. "We should get ready for the appointment."

"Oh yeah," said Casey who almost forgot about it.

Cappie stood up and handed Casey his shower caddy.

"You can shower first today, mommy," he said with a smile.

Cappie watched Casey grab a towel and head out of the room to the bathroom. His brothers were really good about letting Casey take a shower there since she was always making them some sort of food and cleaning up things around the house. He sat back down on the bed and reached for his phone again. He highlighted the number his parents called him from and hit the 'store' button so he could have it in his phone. If he didn't hear from them in three weeks then he was going to call them. There was no reason for them not to be happy for him. And there was no way he was going to let his child grow up not knowing his or her grandparents.

* * *

**_A/N: Sooooo my first time posting three chapters because you guys are so awesome!_**

**_I can't believe the number of responses I got from the last posting.....maybe I should leave you with some cliffhangers more often :0) LoL.....I'll try not to though._**

**_How about a little teaser........In the next chapter we find out if it's a boy or a girl!!!_**

**_REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW!!!_**


	27. Incredible

INCREDIBLE

Cappie and Casey sat patiently in the waiting room until a nurse came and called Casey's name. They went back to the same exam room they were in for their previous appointment.

"Go ahead and step on the scale," said the nurse.

Casey did so, not wanting to see the number. Ten pounds. She had gained five more since her last appointment.

"Is that OK?" she asked the nurse.

"Yes, that's normal," the nurse replied.

The nurse again took her vital signs and instructed the couple that the doctor would be in shortly. This time Cappie sat in the chair in the corner. But he pulled it close to Casey who was on the exam table as soon as the nurse left.

"So," he said casually. "Do you want it to be a boy or a girl?"

"I don't know," said Casey. "A part of me wants a girl so I can teach her how to grow up to be a woman and dress her up in all kinds of cute clothes. But another part of me wants it to be a boy so I can teach him how to treat a lady and a boy would give you someone to wrestle around with."

"Who says I couldn't do that with a girl?" asked Cappie.

Casey laughed. "I don't think that would look very appropriate."

"Oh yeah," said Cappie understanding what Casey was trying to say.

"What about you?" asked Casey. "What do you want it to be?"

Cappie thought about it for a second.

"I guess I don't really care," he replied. "I'm just happy that I have a baby. I never really pictured having children in my future. Not saying that I never would have had children. It was just not something that I thought about."

"Yeah, same here," Casey replied. "I knew I wanted children someday. I always pictured having a boy and a girl just so I could experience what it was like to raise both genders."

"Hmmm," said Cappie. "Do you think we'll have more children?"

Casey looked at him oddly.

"Let's get through this one for a few years before we go and make that decision," she said with a laugh.

Just then Dr. Kline walked into the room.

"Hello Casey, nice to see you," she said as she entered the room. "Oh my," she said noticing Casey's cast. "What happened?"

"I had a fall," she said. "I broke my wrist and have to have this on for another week or so."

"Did you hit your stomach on the ground?" Dr. Kline asked.

"Yeah, I did," Casey replied. "But I went to the emergency room and they hooked me up to a fetal heart monitor for a few hours to make sure everything was OK."

"Did you have any bleeding or cramping afterwards," she asked.

"No, everything was fine," Casey replied.

"Well that's good to hear," said the doctor. "And how are things going with daddy?" she asked turning to Cappie.

"Everything is great here," he replied even though he was still thinking about the hell he went through with his parents earlier in the morning.

"OK Casey, let's take a look at the baby," said Dr. Kline.

Casey rested back on the bed as she pulled her shirt up exposing her stomach. She cringed once again as Dr. Kline put the cold ultrasound gel on. Dr. Kline began moving the machine around on her abdomen quietly nodding her head.

"Oh look," she said pointing to the screen. "The baby is sucking its thumb."

Cappie stood up to look closer at the screen.

"That is so cute," said Casey.

"Yeah, that's amazing," said Cappie as he could see the picture clearer now.

Cappie sat back down as Dr. Kline began taking some measurements on the ultrasound screen. She then went over and looked at a calendar.

"Well based on the measurements right now," she stated. "I am going to put your due date right about October 5th."

Cappie took Casey's right hand after Dr. Kline had said that. Hearing the due date made things just a little more real for the both of them.

"So have you guys decided if you want to know the sex yet?" Dr. Kline asked.

"Yes, we do," Casey replied.

"Alright, let me see here," she said as she moved the ultrasound head around to the proper position.

Casey squeezed Cappie's hand a little more in the anticipation.

"It's a girl!" she exclaimed.

Cappie stood up and kissed Casey on the lips. She looked at him with her eyes wide.

"We're going to have a little girl," she said happily.

"Yes we are," he replied with a smile. "Guess Cappie junior isn't going to work out much anymore huh?"

Casey laughed as she kissed him again. He always said the cutest things.

Dr. Kline ended the ultrasound and wiped the gel off of Casey's stomach.

"Well," she said. "Everything is looking great. Have you felt the baby move yet?"

"No," said Casey a little worried. "Should I have?"

"It's OK," assured Dr. Kline. "Since it's your first pregnancy you may not feel the baby move quite yet. But I would be on the lookout for movement in the next week or two. Like I said, you have a mover in there."

"Alright," Casey replied.

"So do either of you have any questions for me?" Dr. Kline asked.

"Yeah," said Casey. "Graduation is in a couple of weeks and I'm going to be moving back to the Chicago area with my parents. Are you able to send my records to the doctor once I find one in the area?"

"Of course," Dr. Kline replied. "Actually I have a good friend I graduated medical school with who is in the Chicago area."

Dr. Kline took out a pad of paper and wrote some information down.

"Her name is Dr. Snyder and here is the number to her office," she continued handing Casey the piece of paper. "I'm sure she would be happy to follow you through the rest of the pregnancy. And since things are looking well you probably won't need another ultrasound until you're well into your third trimester. I would say around thirty to thirty-two weeks."

"Thanks," Casey replied.

"Anything else?" Dr. Kline asked.

"Actually, yeah," Cappie piped in.

Both Casey and Dr. Kline turned to him.

"Are there any precautions to, um, having sex while she's pregnant," he asked. "Are we even allowed to have sex?"

Casey glared at Cappie. She found that to be a very inappropriate question to come from him. But at the same time with things getting a little heated before his parents called this morning she was kind of wondering the same thing.

Dr. Kline let out a small laugh. "Of course it is OK to have sex," she said. "There is really no precautions except you don't want to lie on Casey's stomach. Otherwise, sex is perfectly normal to have while a woman is pregnant. You can't hurt the baby and studies have shown that women even enjoy sex a lot more while pregnant because of the sensitivity in their hormones caused by pregnancy."

"Thanks," Cappie replied blushing just a bit.

"Well I guess this is it then," said Dr. Kline. "I'll send your records as soon as I get the request from whatever doctor you choose in Chicago. It has really been a pleasure getting to know you guys."

"You too," said Casey as she shook Dr. Kline's hand.

"Make sure you guys send me a picture of the baby," said Dr. Kline as she shook Cappie's hand. "I would love to see her."

"You bet," Casey replied.

They followed Dr. Kline out to the waiting room.

"She's moving out of town," she told the secretary. "So she doesn't have to schedule another appointment."

"OK," the secretary nodded.

"If anything comes up while you're still in town Casey don't hesitate to call," said Dr. Kline. "But I wish you two luck with everything."

"Thanks again for everything doctor," said Casey as her and Cappie walked out of the door.

Cappie opened Casey's door for her as she got in. He went over to the driver's side and also got in. Once in the car Cappie just sat there. He didn't even put the keys in the ignition.

"Something wrong?" Casey asked him

"We're going to have a girl," said Cappie with a soft smile on his face. "A little girl, Case."

"I know honey," she said putting her arms around him. "Little Casey junior."

Cappie looked at her and rolled his eyes. Casey just smiled at him as he started the car.

* * *

**_A/N: Awww....they are so cute aren't they??_**

**_So only one chapter today, sorry :0( But I promise you two tomorrow because 28 and 29 go well together. _**

**_So what did you guys think? Did you think it was going to be a girl?_**

**_Totally agree with you mac-reye.....the baby is certainly going to be a "daddy's girl" when it comes to Cappie._**

**_Thanks for the awesome reviews everyone. As I said, they keep me motivated to write! Just started chapter 51 last night! I never expected the story to be so long.....LoL.....but as long as you guys like it I'll keep going._**


	28. The Love You Save

THE LOVE YOU SAVE

Casey spent the next weekend filling out job applications and updating her resume. It was time she needed as Cappie went out of town with Rusty. He wouldn't tell her exactly what they were doing, just that he needed to go settle some things before graduation. Things were going well for the two of them. It was like knowing they were going to have a girl strengthened the bond in their relationship. Casey was just putting the finishing touches on her resume when Ashleigh walked into the room.

"Hey Case," she said. "I feel like I haven't seen you in forever."

"I'm sorry," said Casey. "I know I've been spending a lot of nights at the KT house."

"It's understandable," Ashleigh replied. "You are having the president's baby."

Casey smiled at her.

"So what have you been up to?" Ashleigh asked.

"Just applying to some jobs online and updating my resume," she replied. "How about you?"

"I just got back from dinner with Fisher," said Ashleigh. "It was very romantic."

Casey turned her chair around to face Ashleigh who had a goofy grin on her face.

"What do you mean by romantic?" Casey asked suspiciously.

"I'm not supposed to tell," said Ashleigh biting her lip and sitting on her bed.

Casey jumped up out of her chair and went over to sit by Ashleigh.

"Tell me," she said staring at her.

Ashleigh continued to be mute. Casey then noticed that Ashleigh had been hiding her left hand from her. So she grabbed it from behind Ashleigh's purse and saw the beautiful diamond ring on her ring finger.

"OH MY GOD! ASHLEIGH!" Casey screamed.

"Shhhh," said Ashleigh bringing her hand to her mouth. "You're going to ruin my candle passing if everyone knows before it happens."

"I want to know everything," said Casey. "How did he do it?"

"Well," said Ashleigh continuing to smile from ear to ear. "We had dinner at Leonardo's in town. And afterwards we went for a walk by Dillon Lake. It was so romantic Casey. He told me how much our relationship means to him and how much he loves me. And then he took out three roses. He handed me one and said it represented our past. And then he handed me the second one and said that it represented our present. And finally he handed me the third one and said that it represented our future and it had the ring tied around it. And of course I said yes!"

"Aw Ash I'm so happy for you," Casey exclaimed giving her a hug. "This is so sudden though. Were you guys even talking about getting married?"

Casey tried not to sound like she doubted Ashleigh's relationship with Fisher but the engagement did seem rather sudden to her. Especially with Fisher cheating on Ashleigh last semester. Casey actually thought her and Cappie would be engaged before Ashleigh and Fisher did.

"Not really," said Ashleigh letting go of Casey. "But he felt that since graduation was next week he better make his move now to let me know how much he sees a future with me."

"So what are you guys doing after graduation?" Casey asked.

"I didn't tell you Case?" said Ashleigh.

"No," said Casey with a confused look.

"Last week I got offered an internship with Vogue magazine in New York. I start right after graduation," she replied.

"Wow, that's amazing news too!" said Casey. "I feel so out of tune with your life lately with the baby and everything that is going on with mine. I'm really sorry Ash."

"Don't be," said Ashleigh. "I know you are going through a lot. It doesn't mean that we still aren't best friends though."

"You're the best Ash, I love you," said Casey giving her another hug.

"So," said Ashleigh as she broke away from Casey. "Where is Cappie?"

"He's gone for the weekend," Casey replied. "Said he had to do some things before graduation."

"Hmmm," said Ashleigh. "That sounds kind of suspicious."

"How so?" Casey asked suspicious herself.

"Have you two talked about getting married at all?" asked Ashleigh.

"Ash, we've only been officially dating for like a month," Casey replied rolling her eyes, even though the thought of Cappie asking her to marry him made her heart flutter quite a bit.

"Oh come on Casey," said Ashleigh. "You two have dated for over a year in the past and you have a baby on the way together."

"I guess," Casey replied.

"And, not to mention," said Ashleigh. "You guys are so incredibly in love. Anyone can see it when you two are together and the way that you look at each other."

"Yeah, I do love him," Casey replied with a smile.

"You see," said Ashleigh putting her arm around Casey. "You two are meant for each other."

"I can't believe my best friend is engaged!" said Casey changing the subject. "So have you guys talked about when you want to get married?"

"Case, we just got engaged tonight," said Ashleigh with a small laugh. "But as soon as I know I'll let you know since I would love for you to be up there with me in the wedding."

"Aw," said Casey. "I would be happy to be in your wedding."

"Yay!" said Ashleigh.

There was a brief silence.

"So if you're going to New York after graduation, what is Fisher doing?" Casey finally asked.

"He's got a job in New York too," said Ashleigh. "We are going to go apartment searching after the graduation ceremony next week."

"That's great," Casey replied.

"Can you believe everything is coming to an end?" Ashleigh asked. "I mean it just seems like yesterday I met you in the laundry room at the dorms. Where did the time go?"

"It sure went by fast," said Casey with a sigh. "I'm really going to miss you Ash."

"Hey, no sad stuff yet," said Ashleigh. "We still have another week."

"OK," said Casey with a small smile. "I blame it on the hormones."

"Silly baby," said Ashleigh as she reached over and rubbed Casey's stomach. "Well Case, I have to get going. I promised Fisher I would spend the night at his place."

"I understand," said Casey with a wink. "Congratulations again, Ash. I'm so happy for you."

"Thanks Case," said Ashleigh giving her a hug. "I'll see you tomorrow."

Casey watched Ashleigh pick up her overnight bag and give her a little wave as she walked out of the door. She changed into her pajamas and climbed into bed. Casey began to think about what Ashleigh had said about her and Cappie getting engaged. She always thought her and Cappie wouldn't get engaged until after the baby was born. There was no need for the two of them to rush into anything. They had their whole lives ahead of them. But she began to change these thoughts slightly when she realized how much her heart fluttered when talking about it with Ashleigh. She was happy for Ashleigh, her best friend deserved all the happiness in the world. But she did question whether Fisher was really the guy for Ashleigh. She tried to shake off her thoughts about the situation. Ashleigh was her best friend, she should be happy for her. Casey began to toss and turn in bed trying to get comfortable. She missed Cappie. She missed Cappie's arms around her. It was one of the first nights she has spent alone in a long time. And deep down she hoped this would be one of the last nights she would ever sleep alone again.

* * *

**_A/N: So as I promised two chapters tonight :0)_**

**_Yay for Ashleigh right????_**

**_Off to chapter 29..........._**


	29. You Never Know

YOU NEVER KNOW

"Ugh, I feel like a blimp in this gown," said Casey as she observed herself in the mirror. "And I look like a giant blueberry."

"Oh you don't look that bad," said Cappie as he put his own blue gown on.

Casey turned to him and glared. "Not that bad. Thanks, that makes me feel so much better."

"You know I think you're the most beautiful girl in the world," said Cappie walking up to Casey. "Stop worrying, you look fine."

"I can't believe this day has finally come," said Casey wrapping her arms around Cappie.

"Me either," said Cappie giving her a kiss. "I thought I still had a year or two before this day came."

There was a knock at the door. Cappie broke away from Casey and maneuvered around several boxes in his room to answer it.

"Beaver!" said Cappie opening the door. "You look very nice in your gown."

"Thanks," said Beaver adjusting his cap. "I was just coming to see if you guys were ready to head over to the stadium."

"Yeah, you ready Case?" asked Cappie.

"Ready as I'll ever be," Casey replied grabbing her cap and following the boys out the door.

The three of them walked into the stadium and found their seats. Cappie and Casey were only a couple of people apart but Beaver had to break away from them to head towards the back of the stadium.

"Hey Case," said a familiar voice as she sat down.

"Evan," she said somewhat awkwardly. The two of them really hadn't spoke much since he tried to make a move on her two weeks ago.

"I just wanted to tell you that you look glowing," he said. "And congratulations."

"Well congratulations to you too," said Casey. "Where are you headed to after graduation?"

"I'm going to be doing an internship over the summer for the Smith and Donavan law firm in Columbus and then headed to Harvard for law school in the fall," he replied.

"Wow, that's awesome," Casey replied. "I'm really proud of you Evan."

"Thank you," said Evan. "And what about you?"

"I'm headed back to Chicago," she replied. "Still looking for a job. I put in a lot of resumes and have some interviews lined up next week so we'll just have to see."

"Well you're very talented and have a great heart," said Evan. "I'm sure you will do fine."

"So did your parents come?" Casey asked.

"Surprisingly they did," Evan replied pointing to the stands to the right of them.

"Well that's great," she said. "I'm glad that they were able to come and support you given everything that has happened."

"Yeah," said Evan solemnly. "At least they are still paying for school though. And my internship is paid so I should be able to stay on my feet. How about your parents? Did they make it?"

"They're around here somewhere," said Casey scanning the crowd trying to find her family. She then spotted Rusty and her parents sitting not far from Evan's parents and waved to them. Evan turned and waved to them too.

"And how about Cappie's?" Evan asked.

Casey gave Evan a worried look.

"They didn't come did they?" Evan asked feeling sorry for Cappie.

"No," said Casey. "They haven't even talked to Cappie since he told them about the baby. It's really sad and he's trying to stay strong but I know it really hurts him."

Casey looked over at Cappie down the aisle from her. He smiled at her and she smiled back.

"Well Cappie has always been a strong person," Evan replied. "And I'm sure his parents will come around at some point. I can't imagine they wouldn't want to get to know their granddaughter."

"I hope you're right," Casey replied.

Just then Dean Bowman walked up to the podium and began the graduation ceremony. After a few key note speakers and a speech by the valedictorian it was time to get their diplomas.

"Sarah Cabonera, Timothy Cane, Scott Cannade, Charles 'Cappie' Cappington," said Dean Bowman.

It was Cappie's turn to go up. He climbed up the steps slowly savoring the moment. He took a quick look at Casey and Evan who were waiting in line behind him and gave them a thumbs up. They returned his gesture with a smile and he began to walk towards Dean Bowman. As Cappie accepted the diploma from Dean Bowman and shook his hand the crowd cheered. But something especially caught Cappie's ear. There were people yelling 'yay Cappie' over the cheers of everyone else. He scanned the audience to see where the screams were coming from. Then he saw it. In the back of the stadium his parents were standing and cheering loudly for him. They had come. They had made it. Cappie took a deep breath trying to savor the moment a little longer. It was the perfect moment in time. Eventually he found himself off of the stage and back in his seat. He turned around to make sure his parents hadn't left. No, they were still there. He waved to them and they waved back.

Casey completed her walk across the stage with cheers from her parents and Rusty. She was walking past Cappie to return to her seat when he grabbed her hand. She tensed up as he pulled her close to him and kissed her deeply.

"Congratulations sweetheart," he said. "I'm so proud of you."

"I'm so proud of you too," she smiled at him.

Cappie leaned in and kissed her again. Everything was perfect. He had the perfect girl, he just graduated from college, his parents were there to support him and most importantly he had a child on the way with his perfect girl. Nothing was going to stop him now.

After the graduation ceremony Casey and Cappie pushed through the crowds of people to find their parents. They met up with Casey's first.

"Mom!" yelled Casey as she went running up to her mother and giving her a hug.

"Congratulations honey!" her mom exclaimed hugging her back.

Casey broke away and hugged both her dad and Rusty.

"You did it sis," said Rusty as he pulled away from her. "Congratulations."

"Thanks Russ," she replied.

Rusty then turned to Cappie and gave him a hug.

"I'm proud of you too big brother," said Rusty. "I just hope I can follow in your footsteps and continue to make Kappa Tau the coolest fraternity on campus."

"You can President Cartwright," said Cappie giving him a hug. "But I'm always just a phone call away if you need anything."

"I know," Rusty replied.

Cappie broke away from Rusty and continued to search the crowd for his parents.

"Casey!" said Ashleigh running up to her and her family.

"Ashleigh!" Casey yelled as she gave her a big hug.

"Congratulations!" Ashleigh said.

"You too," Casey replied. "We finally did it!"

"We sure did," Ashleigh replied.

"Congratulations Ashleigh sweetheart," said Casey's mom giving Ashleigh a hug. "You know if you are ever in the Chicago area you are welcome at our house anytime."

"Thanks Mrs. Cartwright," Ashleigh replied with a smile.

"Mom did you see Ashleigh's ring?" Casey said as she picked up Ashleigh's hand to show her mom.

"Wow Ashleigh," she said. "It's beautiful! Congratulations."

"Thanks," Ashleigh replied just a little embarrassed being the center of attention.

"Cap did you see her ring?" said Casey interrupting Cappie's gaze on the crowd to find his parents.

"I did now," Cappie replied kissing Ashleigh's hand. "I'm very happy for you Ash."

"Thanks," said Ashleigh. "Congrats on graduating."

"Thanks," Cappie replied returning his gaze to the crowd.

"Don't mind him," said Casey. "He's just looking for his parents."

"OK," Ashleigh replied. "Well speaking of parents I should probably go find mine. Are you guys coming to Dobler's tonight?"

"Maybe," Casey replied. "I'm not sure what we are doing."

"OK, well don't leave without saying bye to me," said Ashleigh as she began to walk away.

"I won't!" Casey yelled back.

She then turned to her parents.

"When are you heading home Case?" her dad asked.

"Probably tomorrow," Casey replied.

"Well sorry we can't take you to dinner or anything tonight," said her mom. "But your father has a couple of emergency meetings tomorrow."

"I know," Casey replied. "I understand."

"We'll see you at home then?" her dad asked giving her another hug. "And maybe a rain check on a dinner celebration after you get home?"

"Of course," Casey replied. "Either tomorrow or Monday. Depending on when we leave tomorrow. I'll call you and let you know what our plans end up being."

"OK," said her mom now giving her a hug. "I love you."

"Love you too mom," Casey replied. "I'll see you guys later."

Casey watched as Rusty and her parents left the stadium. She then turned to Cappie who was still trying to find his parents. She went over to him and put her arm around his waist.

"You don't think they would just leave do you?" he asked sounding like he was about to cry.

"I don't think so," Casey replied trying to be as reassuring as she could.

Just then she saw Cappie get the hugest smile on his face. Finally, walking towards him and Casey, were his parents.

* * *

**_A/N: OK so I left you guys with another cliffhanger.....but this one isn't as bad as the other one.....LoL!_**

**_Hope you guys liked the two new chapters. What do you think his parents are going say?_**

**_Next chapter (maybe two) will be up tomorrow!_**


	30. Time Will Tell

TIME WILL TELL

"Mom, dad, you made it," said Cappie giving his parents hugs.

"We knew we couldn't miss something huge like this," his mom replied. "Congratulations honey."

"Thanks mom," Cappie replied.

He turned to see Casey oddly standing behind him.

"Oh, mom, dad," he began. "This is Casey."

"Ah yes, we've heard so much about you," said Cappie's father shaking Casey's hand.

"I'm not one to shake hands," said his mother as she gave Casey a genuine hug. "Oh," she said patting Casey's stomach. "I see someone's growing in there."

Casey smiled nervously as Cappie put his arm around her.

"Mom," said Cappie somewhat frustrated with her as she was acting like nothing happened between them two weeks ago. "Our last phone conversation didn't end so well. I-"

"This really isn't the place to discuss things," said Cappie's father. "Why don't we go grab some dinner?"

"OK," Cappie replied.

The four of them exited the stadium and walked to Ray's Place, a nearby restaurant. They first sat in silence, each observing the menu to ease the tension from having to say anything. But after the waitress came to take their orders there wasn't anything else to distract them from what needed to be talked about.

"So, how far along are you Casey?" asked Cappie's mother in an attempt to break the ice.

"Um, eighteen weeks," she replied.

Cappie could sense Casey was feeling as nervous as he was. He took her hand underneath the table and squeezed it, hoping it would calm both of them at least a little bit.

Cappie's mom just nodded her head.

"Mom," Cappie finally spoke. "What happened to you that day on the phone? Dad said you walked away."

"Well that was life altering news honey," his mom replied. "I didn't know how to react. And I didn't want to say something that I may have regretted."

"But you really hurt me mom," said Cappie looking at the table and playing with the straw in his drink. "I thought you of all people would understand."

"And why did you think that?" his mother replied. "You are so young to be having children. You have your whole life ahead of you."

"Mom, this may not have been in my life plan at this point in time," said Cappie. "But we all know that children would come eventually. What is so wrong with moving things up a few years?"

"There's nothing wrong with that," his dad interjected. "I just don't see you mature enough at this point to raise a child."

"That's a little judgmental coming from someone who calls me once a month and sees me three times a year," Cappie snapped back.

"True," his dad replied. "But-"

"Honey, let's hear him out," his mother interrupted. "Maybe our son has changed."

Both of his parents looked at Cappie waiting for him to say something. He didn't want to say anything. He was still quite bitter at his dad's last comment.

"Cappie has grown up so much in the past year," Casey finally piped in. "And we have a plan for this child. We're going to move to Chicago, find jobs and raise the baby together, as a family. Ever since I became pregnant Cappie has done everything he can to be supportive and really show me that the two of us can raise this child. I have to admit at first I didn't think we would be able to do it. But it was his talking of goals and the future that really made me realize that we can do this."

"That was very nice of you to say Casey," said Mr. Cappington. "But I--"

"How can you not have any faith in your son?" Cappie finally said as he cut off his dad. "Look at graduation. You guys didn't think I would graduate on time and I did just that today. If anything this baby is enabling me to grow up. With every decision I make now I ask myself how it will affect her. Will my daughter benefit or not from my decisions?"

"Um, daughter?" asked Mrs. Cappington almost becoming choked up.

"Yes mom," Cappie replied. "We're going to be having a little girl. Your granddaughter."

"Oh that is just so precious," she said turning to her husband. "We'll have a little girl in the family Tobias."

"That is, if you want to be a part of her life," said Cappie eyeing his parents.

"Well of course we want to be a part of her life," his mom replied.

"Look Cappie," his dad added. "You've already made this decision to have the baby. There is nothing your mother and I can do to go back and change that. As parents we have to present a little of the dark side of things to you. That's our job. But that doesn't mean that we aren't going to accept Casey into our family and love our granddaughter any less."

"So you're really OK with this?" Cappie asked.

His parents turned and looked at each other.

"I wouldn't say we're completely OK with it," said his mom. "But after some long discussions, meditations, and taking the past couple of weeks to think about it, we realized that we can't change what has happened. We love you Cappie and we only want what is the best for you."

"Well what is best for me is sitting right next to me," said Cappie putting his arm around Casey. "Nothing is more important than Casey and our baby to me. I love them both very much."

Cappie turned to look at Casey the same time she turned to look at him. He leaned in and gave her a soft kiss on the lips.

"And I love you two also," Cappie continued turning to his parents. "And I hope that you will want to be a part of the baby's life once I can show you that I'm OK. I can make it."

"We know you can son," said his mom reaching across the table for his hand. "And we're here for you if you need anything, anything at all."

"Thanks guys," said Cappie with a smile.

"And the same goes for you Casey," said Cappie's father. "We are serious about welcoming you to the family. We all may be a couple of oddballs but we'll do anything we can to help if you need anything."

"Thanks," said Casey also smiling. "That really means a lot to me. I was so nervous that you wouldn't like me or you guys would be mad at me."

"No, not at all," his mom replied. "You are a very beautiful girl and I can tell that my son loves you very much. You two will make a great family."

"Hey do you want to see the ultrasound picture," said Cappie digging out his wallet.

"Oh I'd love to!" said his mom.

Cappie handed it to his mom as she held it up to the light to see.

"That's not the most recent one," said Cappie. "Casey has a copy of that one packed away. I'll have to show it to you sometime, the baby is sucking her thumb. It is really cute."

Cappie's mom brought her arm back down the table and looked at Cappie.

"You are really excited about this aren't you?" she asked him.

"You have no idea how excited I am mom," Cappie replied. "I never thought about being a dad. But now that the situation has presented itself all I can think about is being the best father I can be. I'm never letting that little girl out of my sight."

Cappie's mom just smiled back at him as she gave the picture back to him.

Soon the waitress came with their food and the four of them ate making mostly small talk about the baby.

"Well," said Mr. Cappington standing up and stretching. "You're mother and I should get going. We promised to meet some friends at a campground a few hours from here."

"OK dad," said Cappie also standing up. "Any idea when I'll see you guys again?"

"I'm not sure," said his dad giving him a hug.

"But," said his mom interjecting. "I can guarantee that it will at least be October, if not sooner. We'll be here for the birth of our granddaughter. Promise you that."

Cappie gave his mom a hug squeezing her tightly. He missed her so much. He didn't want let her go.

"Well Casey," said Mr. Cappington turning to her. "It has been a pleasure meeting you. And you keep yourself and the baby healthy."

"I will," said Casey extending her hand to Cappie's dad.

He just smiled and wrapped his arms around Casey.

"I don't shake hands with my daughter," he said smiling and backing away from her.

"OK my turn!" said Mrs. Cappington finally out of Cappie's grasp.

"Try not to have that baby in the middle of the night," she said somewhat jokingly as she gave Casey a hug. "Because our cell phones won't work so well then."

"Alright, I'll try," said Casey with a small laugh.

Mrs. Cappington backed away and put her hand on Casey's stomach and rubbed.

"I'll see you soon precious," she said. "Try not to give your parents too much hell."

Cappie went over to Casey and pulled her away from his mom. He knew how uncomfortable she got when strange people rubbed her stomach.

"OK mom," he said. "It's time for you to go now."

"Alright," she replied. "We love you both."

"Love you too mom," said Cappie as he watched his parents walk out of the restaurant.

"Well," said Casey as she leaned into Cappie. "That wasn't so bad."

"I guess," said Cappie. "I knew they were hiding their disappointment as best as they could."

"You don't think they meant what they said?" Casey asked.

"No," replied Cappie. "They meant everything they said. My parents don't lie. I could just tell that they weren't too keen on the idea. But I'll prove to them that I can do this."

"Correction," said Casey. "_We_ can do this."

"We sure can," Cappie replied.

"So," said Casey as they began to walk out of the restaurant. "Should we spend our last night in CRU at the KT or the ZBZ house?"

"You know," said Cappie thinking about it briefly. "I kind of want to spend my last night at the ZBZ house. It was, after all, where our future started. Why not close this chapter there?"

"Sounds good to me," Casey replied.

With that the two of them headed off to Greek row and the ZBZ house to spend their last night at Cyprus Rhodes. Together. The way it should be.

* * *

**_A/N: So what's going to happen their last night at CRU??_**

**_Off to chapter 31 to find out........_**


	31. This Time Around

THIS TIME AROUND

Cappie couldn't sleep much that night. He just had too many things on his mind. Here was his time at Cyprus Rhodes coming to an end. Never in a million years did he picture this kind of ending. Sure he dreamed a few times of graduating with Casey and getting married and living happily ever after but that was just dreams. He always thought Casey would be long gone out of his life when he graduated. He pictured her being successful in politics, married to a rich and powerful man. Not him. No, Cappie could never be that guy. Sure he did have some money but he wouldn't describe himself as powerful. He was just being him and over the past few weeks he finally was able to realize that Casey loved him for him. It was something he waited to feel for such a long time. The freshman year Casey would never have been able to accept him for who he was, despite how much she loved him. But things were different now. Something about this love was different, but in a good way.

Cappie turned on his side to look at Casey sleeping next to him. She had gotten up to go to the bathroom and because she hates to wake him up, just fell back asleep on her side of the bed. Little did she know, he was awake. He was thinking about her. He was thinking about the baby. He was thinking about the future. Cappie looked up at the clock: 3:45 am. As much as he hated to wake her up he needed to talk to her. He needed to tell her what he was feeling and how much she was his entire life.

He scooted closer to her and brushed some of the hair out of her face. Sometimes that woke her up but it didn't work this time around, she was in too much of a deep sleep. So he did the next best thing. He leaned in and began to softly kiss her lips. At first they didn't move but slowly he felt her begin to kiss him back the more she realized what was going on. He broke away as she opened her eyes slowly, trying to adjust them to the moonlight that filled the room.

"Cap what are you doing?" she asked softly.

"I'm sorry for waking you," Cappie replied. "But I was laying here just thinking about you and how gorgeous you are and how much I care about you."

"I feel the same way," Casey replied. "But it's almost four in the morning. Don't you think it could have waited a few more hours?"

Cappie smiled slightly. "Probably," he said. "I just didn't feel like waiting."

Casey smiled back at him and leaned in to give him another soft kiss.

"I love you Casey," said Cappie as he backed away.

"I love you too Cappie," Casey said just as Cappie plunged his lips towards hers and began to kiss her passionately.

At first Casey was caught off guard. But soon Cappie was above her, staring into to her eyes. His hair was falling into his eyes, just like it did the last time they were in this bed together. Then Casey realized the significance of what was happening, unsure if Cappie had realized it too. She pushed him back to sit on his knees as she sat up in the bed. She stared at him intently as she reached her hands underneath his shirt, took it off, and threw it on the floor. Cappie did the same with Casey's shirt. He gently laid her back down onto the bed as he began to kiss her again, allowing his hands to explore her body. Casey had both of her hands in his hair messily playing with it.

Cappie broke away from her lips and slowly began kissing down her body. He froze for just a second when he got to her stomach. But she let out a slight moan that made him relax and feel much more comfortable about what he was doing. He slowly slipped off her shorts and underwear leaving her completely naked. He again let his hands roam her body feeling every curve that made her Casey Cartwright.

"Now this isn't fair," said Casey sitting up with an evil smile.

She pushed Cappie down onto the bed and slid his boxers off so he would be equally as naked. Casey straddled him as she leaned down to kiss him.

"God I love you Casey," said Cappie as she moved to nibble on his ear which she knew drove him crazy.

Casey finally sat up and stared down at Cappie's eyes.

"Are you ready?" she asked somewhat unsure of herself.

"Well, of course," Cappie replied softly caressing her face. "But aren't you scared?"

Casey leaned down so she was touching noses with Cappie.

"When I'm in your arms, I have nothing to be scared of," she whispered softly.

That was all Cappie needed to hear. He leaned forward and began to passionately kiss Casey as they switched positions, he was now over her.

"You'll let me know if I'm leaning on you too much, OK," said Cappie slightly scared of hurting the baby.

"We will be fine," Casey replied. "Now make love to me Cap."

And that is what Cappie did. He had never felt so connected to Casey than he did then. He finally understood what she felt four months ago. Every nerve was tingling in his body. Everything in the entire world stopped at that moment. Her soft moaning was all he needed to hear. Her hands gripped tightly on the sides of his waist were all he needed to feel. He never realized how amazing it was to make love to a pregnant woman, especially if that woman was Casey Cartwright.

Cappie collapsed next to Casey pulling her tightly into his arms when they were done. Both of them were covered in sweat and panting loudly.

"That was incredible," Casey finally said between her breaths.

Cappie was speechless, still caught up in the moment.

After a few minutes, their breathing returned to normal. Cappie kissed the top of Casey's head.

"Case?" he asked wondering if she had fallen back asleep.

"Yes," she replied softly, she had almost fallen back asleep.

"I finally know how you felt the night we made our daughter," he said squeezing her a little tighter. "Because I felt it tonight."

Casey didn't respond. Cappie looked down at her and noticed her eyes were shut and her breathing had turned robotic. She had fallen back asleep.

Cappie smiled and kissed the top of her head again. He was content. He wasn't sure if Casey had even heard the last thing that he said but it really didn't matter. The way they just made love was like speaking without saying any words. He had told her everything he needed to say. Cappie fell asleep shortly after Casey. His mind was at peace. The only thing he thought about now was the surprise he had for her later and hoping that she would like it.

* * *

**_A/N: So hope you guys like this scene. I tried not to make it too graphic so I didn't have to move the rating up to an 'M'.....LoL_**

**_Keep the reviews coming! I love the couple of reviews I got from people who read the whole story from the beginning.....that is awesome._**

**_And for those of you wondering about the house......Cappie's got something up his sleeve, so you'll find out soon enough._**

**_If I get lots of good reviews I may put up both 32 and 33 tomorrow......and you'll want to read 33, it's HUGE (big things happening in it), just saying ;0)_**


	32. Hand in Hand

HAND IN HAND

Casey snuggled further into Cappie when she woke up later that morning. She loved the feel of their bare bodies touching each other. Making love to Cappie just a few hours earlier was everything she imagined it would be and more. Sure she has made love to him before but this time was completely different. She couldn't really put words to describe how different it was but there was just something about his touch and his closeness that made everything feel so right.

Cappie also started to stir as he pulled Casey closer to him.

"Cap, you're going to suffocate me and the baby if you pull me any tighter to you," said Casey with a small laugh.

Cappie opened his eyes and smiled.

"Sorry sweetheart," he said loosening his grip just a little.

Casey began to twirl a piece of his hair around her finger.

"I'm going to miss waking up in your arms every day," she said sadly. "I wish you could come live with me at my parents."

"I don't think they would like that very much," said Cappie with a chuckle. "Besides, once I find a place you know you're always welcome to stay there with me."

"What are you going to do until you find a place?" Casey asked.

"It shouldn't take me long to find something," Cappie replied. "And I will probably just stay in one of those extended stay hotels until I do."

"Since when did you have things figured out?" said Casey letting go of his hair and patting him on the chest.

"I've been thinking about the future a lot lately," Cappie replied softly as he kissed the top of her head.

"Well," said Casey as she sat up. "They are closing the house at one so we should probably get going and pack up."

"Alright," Cappie grumbled as he let go of her and watched her scramble for her clothes.

Cappie got out of the bed and did the same. Just then Casey's phone rang.

"Hello?"

"Hey Case, are you up?"

"Yeah, Cappie and I are just moving. What do you need Rusty?" she replied.

"I was just wondering when you guys were planning on heading out."

"I think we're going to put my stuff in my car, then we'll go and get Cappie's into his Jeep and you can just put your stuff wherever it fits," Casey replied.

"Well hurry up," said Rusty. "I want to get out of here."

"We should be at the apartment in a couple hours," Casey replied. "Besides, you shouldn't have too much stuff since you're only going home for a month."

"I have enough," Rusty replied.

"Alright well we'll see you in a bit," Casey replied hanging up the phone without even saying goodbye.

"You know that is really nice of Rusty to drive my Jeep so I can drive you," said Cappie putting on his shoes.

"You really don't have to drive me," Casey replied rolling her eyes. "I can handle it."

"I know you can," said Cappie walking up to her. "But it just gives me an excuse to have my hand on your leg for several hours."

Casey smiled and got up on her tip-toes and kissed him.

Cappie and a couple of his brothers who were still on campus helped him load Casey's things into the car which made the process go much faster.

"Well that's the last load," said Cappie wiping his hands as he walked back into the ZBZ house.

"OK," said Casey sadly as she stood up from the dining room table. "I'm really going to miss this place."

"Yeah, but you'll always have the memories," said Cappie reaching out his hand for hers.

Casey nodded as she took his hand.

"And besides," Cappie continued. "You have so many things to look forward to."

The two of them left the ZBZ house for good and headed over to the KT house to pack up Cappie's Jeep. Casey found a place in the living room to sit while the boys quickly loaded the car.

"All set," said Cappie walking back in the door. He was covered in sweat.

"Already?" Casey asked. "That was quick."

"Yeah well I'm ready to close this chapter in my life," said Cappie. "So many new things to look forward to."

The two each drove their cars over to Rusty's apartment. He only had a couple of bags to load into Cappie's Jeep and it was finally time for them to leave.

"So do you think you are just going to drive straight to Chicago tonight?" Rusty asked.

Casey looked at Cappie and shrugged her shoulders.

"I doubt it Spitter," Cappie replied. "With as many bathroom stops we have to take we will probably have to split it up and get a hotel tonight."

"Hey," said Casey playfully hitting Cappie's arm. "I can't help it if I have a baby sitting on my bladder twenty-four hours a day."

"Well I think I'm just going straight through if that's OK with you guys," said Rusty.

"That's fine," Casey replied. "Don't let us stop you."

A few minutes later they were on the highway. After a couple of hours they had lost Rusty because of two stops so Casey could use the bathroom. After another two hours of driving Cappie suggested they call it a night and get a hotel room. Casey was already falling asleep in the car so she didn't object.

Cappie found a hotel off of the highway and checked in to a room with one king size bed this time around.

"I am going to go to the bathroom," said Cappie as he set down their overnight bag and headed into the restroom.

Casey sat on the edge of the bed, waiting for Cappie to finish so she could use the restroom.

"Man, the soap just smells so good in hotel--," Cappie began to say as he came out of the bathroom. But he stopped mid-sentence because he saw Casey sitting on the edge of the bed with her hand on her stomach and the most horrid look on her face.

"Oh my god, what's wrong?" Cappie asked as he went over and knelt down in front of her.

Casey didn't say anything. She didn't even look at him. Her eyes were fixed on her stomach.

"Case, talk to me," said Cappie, his voice becoming more worried. "Is there something wrong with the baby? Do we need to go to the hospital?"

Casey took her other hand and put it on Cappie's shoulder. Cappie reached his hand up and grabbed her hand into his.

"Case?" he asked again, pleading to have her tell him something.

"The baby," Casey said finally looking up into Cappie's eyes. "She, she just moved. I felt her move."

Cappie let out a sigh of relief knowing that nothing was truly wrong. Casey took Cappie's hand and put it on her stomach.

"Sorry Case," said Cappie after a couple of minutes. "I don't feel anything."

"Give her time," said Casey. "She'll move."

Cappie waited another couple of minutes, still nothing.

"I guess she just doesn't want to move for her daddy," said Cappie letting go and standing up, obviously disappointed.

"Don't worry," said Casey. "I haven't felt her move since you came out of the bathroom. Maybe she's just fallen asleep or something."

"Maybe," said Cappie stripping down to his boxers and climbing in the bed.

Casey changed into shorts and a t-shirt and climbed into bed next to Cappie. Cappie wrapped his arms around her with one hand resting on her stomach.

"There," he said with a small laugh. "I'm ready when she is."

Casey smiled as she rested her hand on top of Cappie's.

"I love you Cap," she said snuggling closer to him.

"I love you too sweetheart," Cappie replied.

A couple of minutes later Cappie shot up in the bed, his face looked like he had just seen a ghost.

"Did I just feel that?" he asked. "Was that real?"

Casey laughed at Cappie as she brought his hand back to her stomach.

"You must have woken her up," she said. "She's really moving now."

Cappie and Casey both rested their hands on her stomach, feeling the baby move around as they stared into each other's eyes.

"I think she just likes it when her daddy tells her mommy how much he loves her," said Cappie leaning in to kiss Casey.

"I think you're right," Casey softly replied as she kissed him back.

The two eventually laid back down in the bed to go to sleep. Cappie instinctively kept his hand on Casey's stomach the rest of the night. Feeling the baby move was one more step to the reality that was really happening in his life. And honestly, he couldn't be happier.

* * *

**_A/N: OK, since the reviews for the last two chapters were so good I'm going to post 33 also :0)_**

**_Just wanted to post a few replies first:  
Hans153.....you are awesome....you're always the first one to review like fifteen minutes after I post the new chapters....LoL  
LilElisina.....you made me laugh with your comment about my story being like a drug.....I'm glad you like it!  
nevermind....your comment was awesome and your english was perfect. It was one of the most thoughtful reviews I've had. Thanks!  
bettakappa....hopefully these two chapters popped up sooner than later for you! Love your reviews....thanks!  
-a-charlie-girl-25 and chocolate luvr forever....Yay for new readers! I'm glad you guys liked it. Thanks for reading!  
mac-reye and ale-la-pazza1.....thanks so much for all the kind comments. I always look forward to what you two have to say!_**

**_OK....enough of that.....just wanted to make sure I let you guys know how much your comments mean to me!_**

**_Off to chapter 33.......I hope you won't be disappointed!_**


	33. More Than Anything

MORE THAN ANYTHING

Cappie and Casey were both up early the next morning.

"Did you feel her move at like three in the morning?" Cappie asked excitedly.

Casey looked at him strangely.

"No," said replied. "And why weren't you sleeping?"

"I was," said Cappie. "I just felt her move and it woke me up briefly that's all."

"Oh, OK," Casey replied. "Because I wasn't going to let you drive the rest of the way if you didn't get any sleep."

The two of them packed up their things and checked out of the hotel room. After grabbing some breakfast they were off to Chicago. The car ride there was filled with mostly small talk between the two of them.

"OK, you're going to take exit fourteen a few miles ahead of here," said Casey as they were nearing her parent's house.

"I remember how to get there," assured Cappie.

A few minutes later Casey noticed Cappie drove right past the exit.

"Cap, you passed it," said Casey. "Now you're going to have to turn around at the next exit."

"Oops, sorry about that," Cappie replied trying not to smile.

But Cappie kept on driving.

"You keep on missing the exits," said Casey becoming frustrated. "The farther north you go the farther you are going away from my parent's home."

"Alright fine, I'll get off here," said Cappie finally getting off at exit twenty-one.

Casey just shook her head and looked out the window.

"You can find your own way back now," she said kind of upset. "Because I have no idea where we are right now."

"I have great sense of direction," said Cappie. "I'll get us there."

"Cappie I've grown up here my entire life and you've been here once, maybe twice," Casey argued back. "Now entering Kenilworth," she read a sign as they passed. "I've heard of this city but I couldn't even tell you where we are right now."

Cappie continued as best as he could to keep a straight face. He made several turns and eventually turned down a neighborhood road with gorgeous family houses lined on either side.

"Hmmm," said Cappie. "You know, I think this house looks nice. Let's go take a look."

Cappie pulled into the driveway and began to get out of the car.

"Cappie," said Casey. "You can't just decide you like a house and knock on the door and ask to see it. This is ridiculous! Can we just go home please?"

Casey continued to sit in the car as Cappie ignored her and walked up to the front door. He then took some keys out of his pocket and opened the door. Casey gave him a disapproving look as she took her seatbelt off and opened the car door.

"Are you coming?" asked Cappie as he walked into the house.

Casey slowly got out of the car and walked up to the front door wondering exactly what was going on. She stepped into the home, closed the door and observed the tall foyer she entered.

"Cap? Where are you?" she asked as she continued to slowly walk into the house.

She found him in the great room, sitting on the edge of a couch.

"I don't know what you're trying to pull here," she continued. "But will you please tell me what is going on?"

Cappie just smiled at her. Casey made her way into the great room. There was a sectional couch that looked brand new along with two recliner chairs facing a huge television. In the corner of the room sat a fireplace. She noticed some pictures on the mantel and went up to get a closer look. Once she saw them her jaw dropped to the floor. There were two framed pictures of her and Cappie.

"Um, Cap," she started to say trying not to read too much into what she just saw. "Why are their pictures of us on the mantel of this house?"

He continued to just lean against the couch with a goofy smile on his face.

"Tell me please, just say the words," she pleaded as she walked over to him and grabbed his hands.

"Welcome home," was all Cappie said.

And that was all Cappie needed to say. Casey jumped right into his arms as tears started to run down her face.

"Are you kidding me?" she asked. "Is this some kind of joke?"

"Nope," said Cappie as he pulled her away from him. "This is ours. This is our house."

"Oh my god," said Casey at a loss of words.

"Come on," said Cappie grabbing her hand. "I'll show you around."

Off of the great room he took her into the kitchen. There was an island in the middle with beautiful cabinetry all along the walls. Stainless steel appliances topped off the beautiful kitchen.

"I figured this would be the perfect kitchen for you to whip up a few patent Casey meals in," he said looking at her face which was still in complete shock.

Cappie then took her to show her the first floor bathroom, laundry room and dining room. He then opened a door and took her downstairs to a finished basement.

"I didn't really get any furniture for down here," he said looking at the bare room. "But I figured we could certainly come up with something to do with this space. Maybe like a rec room or something. We could get a pool table so I can practice my skills."

Casey looked at him and smiled. "You can practice all you want," she said. "But you'll never be as good as me."

Cappie laughed as he took her hand and led her up to the second floor. At the top of the stairs he went to the right to a set of double doors that were closed. He opened them to reveal a beautiful master bedroom to Casey. In the middle of the room was a king size bed with dressers on either side. Off of the bedroom was a gorgeous bathroom complete with a Jacuzzi tub, walk-in shower and his and her sinks. There were also two large walk-in closets.

"Oh I don't know how much more of this I can take," said Casey sitting down on the bed. "Everything is just so gorgeous."

"Come on," said Cappie grabbing her hand. "I just have a couple more things to show you."

He then pulled Casey along to show her two guest bedrooms, one that doubled as an office space which Casey was happy with.

"Alright," said Cappie. "The last door."

Cappie took a deep breath as he opened the door. Casey stepped into the room. It was bare. There was no furniture inside. But she immediately became choked up as she saw the bright pink walls and a pastel colored border of teddy bears around the room.

"I, um," Cappie began somewhat nervously. "I didn't want to buy any furniture for this room because I thought you would like to do it together. You know, getting the crib and everything."

"It's perfect," said Casey continuing to be choked up. "Everything is perfect."

Cappie walked up to her.

"No," he said. "Everything is not perfect."

Casey looked at him as the smile dropped off of her face. How could he not think this house was perfect?

"Case," said Cappie taking a deep breath and taking Casey's hands into his. "I want the two of us to raise our little girl in this house. I want to live here with you, possibly have more children here with you and grow old here with you. I love you so much and I know of something that would make things absolutely perfect."

Cappie reached into his pocket and pulled out a box. Casey gasped at the sight of the box knowing what was just about to happen. Cappie proceeded to get down on one knee in front of her as he opened the box.

"Casey Cartwright, will you make our family complete? Will you marry me?" Cappie finally asked.

"Oh my god," said Casey looking at the diamond ring and taking in what was actually happening at that moment.

She looked at Cappie who was still in front of her on his knee, waiting patiently and nervously for her answer.

"YES!" Casey screamed. "Yes I'll marry you!"

Cappie stood and picked Casey up and twirled her around the room, the happiest he has ever been in his entire life. He set her down and they passionately kissed, seizing the very romantic moment. Cappie finally broke away and took Casey's left hand.

"I believe this belongs to you," he said as he took the ring out of the box and put it on her finger.

"Cap," said Casey almost breathless. "It is gorgeous. I have never seen a more beautiful ring."

"Well you can thank your mom," Cappie replied. "She helped me pick it out."

"What?" asked Casey as she looked at him quizzically.

Cappie led Casey and they both sat on the floor of the baby's room.

"I got the keys to this place May 1st," said Cappie. "That was the weekend Rusty and I went on our little out of town trip."

Casey sighed, wondering how she easily missed a connection like that.

"We spent a lot of time with your parents," Cappie continued. "Your dad helped me find the place and do some painting that weekend. Then Rusty and I went with your mom to pick out some of the furniture and of course pick out the ring."

"So my parents and Rusty knew all about this?" she asked.

"Yup," Cappie replied. "Along with Ashleigh and Beaver."

"Even Ashleigh knew?" asked Casey somewhat disappointed everyone knew this secret but her.

"Calm down," said Cappie taking her hand. "We kept it from you for your own good. I wanted to surprise you. I wanted to show you how serious I am about continuing my life with you and raising our little girl together, as parents and as husband and wife."

"Aw Cap," said Casey softly. "You're going to be my husband."

"And you're going to be my wife," Cappie replied with a smile.

Casey took a deep breath and looked around the room.

"I can't believe this house is really ours," she said.

"Well it's sort of ours," Cappie replied. "One of your dad's friends actually owns this place and I set up a rent to own plan with him so it will be ours at some point, just not right away."

"Cap some of this stuff had to cost a fortune between the house payment and all of the furniture you bought," said Casey.

"Hey, hey," said Cappie bringing his fingers up to her lips. "I told you that money is not going to be a problem for a while. That is money that I want to spend on our child and our child needs a place to live so I think it's very much justified."

"OK," said Casey. "I see your point. But this gorgeous ring, the baby doesn't need that."

"The baby needs it if it means that her parents are going to be together for eternity," Cappie replied. "Plus you deserve something nice. You've been through a lot with this pregnancy already and I know there is more backaches and indigestion to come. So think of it not only as a present from me but a present from the baby too. She's thanking you for putting up with everything she's put you through."

Casey leaned over and wrapped her arms around Cappie.

"What did I ever do to deserve such an amazing guy like you?" she asked.

"You didn't do anything," said Cappie returning her embrace. "You've just been you."

"Thanks Cap," Casey replied.

Cappie broke away from her embrace and stood up. He reached for Casey's hand and pulled her up into standing also.

"Well we should probably get some things unpacked before people start arriving," he said walking out of the room.

"Wait, people arriving?" Casey asked confused.

"Yeah, I invited a few people over tonight," said Cappie. "For a little housewarming and engagement party."

"You're too much," said Casey. "I don't know how many more surprises I can take today."

"That's all, I promise," Cappie replied.

With that the two of them headed back downstairs. Cappie carried in the things from the car while Casey began to unpack and find places for everything in her new house. _Her new house._ The thought was crazy to her. She couldn't believe that Cappie would go and do something like this. She watched him as he carried in a few boxes. Not only did he look handsome as ever but the smile on his face was infectious. She could picture him walking in through the front door for years to come saying 'honey I'm home' and cuddling with her in their new bed every single night. Yes, Cappie was right. Things were absolutely perfect.

* * *

**_A/N: See....I told you guys you would like chapter 33 :0)_**

**_As always, let me know your thoughts....I love to hear from ya._**

**_Sneak Peek: In the next few chapters we have Casey finding a job that may turn out to be not so good for her........_**


	34. Something New

SOMETHING NEW

_Beep beep beep beep beep beep_

"Case, turn off the alarm," said Cappie half asleep.

_Beep beep beep beep beep beep_

"Case," Cappie whined again.

"Oh, sorry honey," said Casey as she knelt down on the bed and turned off the alarm. "Must have forgotten to turn it off when I got up this morning."

Cappie opened his eyes and looked at Casey observing herself in the mirror. She had on a black suit and her hair was professionally pinned back in a bun.

"Where in the heck are you going?" said Cappie sitting up in the bed.

"Don't you remember?" Casey said turning to him. "I have my second interview today with the CEO of Orbitz for the administrative assistant job."

"I don't know why you're even going," said Cappie. "You didn't get a college degree to bring some douche bag his coffee and organize and file papers all day."

"Hey, it's more than that," Casey replied. "And I get my own office."

"Well can you at least come over here and give me a kiss?" Cappie pouted.

Casey walked over and sat on the edge of the bed near Cappie. She leaned in and gave him a kiss as he moaned softly.

"And how is my little girl this morning?" Cappie asked breaking away from Casey and putting his hand on her stomach.

"She's good," Casey replied. "She at least stopped moving last night so I could get some sleep."

"That's right, keep your mommy up all night so she doesn't have to go on these silly interviews," said Cappie playfully talking to Casey's stomach.

"These interviews aren't silly," said Casey as she stood up. "We've been here over two weeks now. It's time we both got jobs and started being adults. You haven't even gone on one interview."

"Haven't found anything that interests me," said Cappie lying back down in the bed.

"Well being an administrative assistant doesn't really interest me," replied Casey. "But if it means getting some money and health insurance for the baby then I'm willing to do the job."

Cappie just rolled his eyes as he turned on his side to try and fall back asleep.

"I'll be back later," said Casey. "Try to do something productive while I'm gone."

Casey went downstairs and grabbed a couple of breakfast bars out of the pantry and a bottle of juice out of the refrigerator. She looked at the clock and realized she needed to be leaving so she quickly went out to the car and off to the job interview.

* * *

Casey sat nervously in the waiting area outside of Mr. Rockford's door. She was hoping she didn't look incredibly pregnant. That's why she wore the black suit today. She was trying to make herself look as thin and not pregnant as possible.

"Ms. Cartwright, you may go in now," said the secretary at the desk outside of Mr. Rockford's office.

Casey slowly stood up and walked into the office. Mr. Rockford was standing by his desk. He was a plump older man in a gray suit. He wasn't the image of your typical powerful CEO of a multi-million dollar company.

"It's so good to see you again Ms. Cartwright," said Mr. Rockford as she entered the room. "How are you today?"

"I'm doing fine," Casey replied smiling.

Mr. Rockford gestured for Casey to have a seat in one of the chairs in front of his desk.

"Can I offer you a bottle or water or a pop to drink?" he asked before sitting down.

"No thank you," Casey replied politely.

Mr. Rockford sat down and pulled out Casey's resume.

"Did you get a chance to look over the job description I gave you the last time?" asked Mr. Rockford.

"Yes," Casey replied. "Everything looks just fine."

"Good," he replied. "Now tell me what some of your responsibilities were in your sorority in college."

"Well sir," Casey said clearing her throat. "I was pledge educator the beginning of my junior year. I was responsible for teaching all of the new pledges about the sorority and what they needed to do to get in. I then was appointed interim president the end of junior year. Of course as president I was responsible for running the sorority and keeping things in order. My senior year I moved on to the Pan-Hellenic board where I was responsible for overseeing judicial matters within all of the sororities on campus."

"Sounds like you were very involved," he replied. "I like that about you."

"Thank you," Casey replied.

"And what brings you to Chicago after graduation?"

"Oh I actually grew up here in the Chicago area," Casey replied. "So it was a natural step for me to come back home."

"How do you handle stress?"

"I think I handle it well. I try not to get too overwhelmed by things. If I have a lot of things on my plate I usually try to just pick away at them one by one and eventually will get through it," Casey replied.

"What do you think you can bring to the company?"

"I think organization is the biggest thing I can bring," Casey replied. "I believe as an assistant I can juggle many tasks at one time and give it my all to complete every task that is handed to me."

The interview went on much like this for the next thirty minutes. Mr. Rockford would ask questions as Casey would answer them as truthfully as she could. As the interview wrapped up Mr. Rockford asked the question Casey had been dreading.

"Ms. Cartwright, are you expecting?"

"Yes I am," she replied bashfully, thinking that she probably just lost the job. "I'm due in October."

"Well congratulations," he replied.

Casey was confused with his reply. She wasn't sure if he was just trying to be nice or if he really meant it.

"Thank you," was all she replied.

"Well Casey I like what I hear from you," Mr. Rockford said. "You seem like you're very organized and focused and that is the type of person I want for this position. If you would like, I would like to offer you the job right now."

Casey was shocked. She didn't think in a million years that he would offer her the job today.

"What about my pregnancy?" she asked. "I will probably have to go on maternity leave in a few months."

"I understand," he replied. "But having a baby is a nature part of life. We have several female employees here who have had babies. We just work through it helping each other a little bit more when someone is off. It won't be a very big deal."

Casey just nodded her head, pleased with his response.

"So," he continued. "Would you accept the offer?"

"I would love to accept," she replied smiling.

"Great!" Mr. Rockford replied. "I'll have Stephanie, my assistant, get all of the paperwork done up so you can look it over."

"OK," Casey replied nodding her head.

Mr. Rockford got on the phone and spoke with his assistant to start the paperwork.

"Alright," he said hanging up the phone. "Let's go see who you are going to work for and the office we have set up for you."

"Wait, what do you mean who I'm going to work for?" asked Casey. "I thought the position was to be your assistant?"

"Oh no," said Mr. Rockford. "I already have Stephanie, she's my assistant. You are going to be the assistant to Robert, he's the head of our web design department. I'm sorry if that wasn't clear."

"That's fine," Casey replied standing up and following Mr. Rockford out of the room. "I was just a little confused that's all."

They walked down the hall and Mr. Rockford knocked on a door that had 'Robert Mason' on the front of it.

"Come on in," he said from inside.

"Bob," said Mr. Rockford as he walked in. "I wanted to introduce you to your new assistant I just hired."

Robert looked up from the file he was reading and surprised to see the pregnant blond girl next to Mr. Rockford.

"Well hello," he said walking up to Casey. "I'm Robert but most everyone around here calls me Bob."

"Hello," Casey replied shaking his hand. "I'm Casey Cartwright."

Casey looked at Bob as he let go of her hand. He was a handsome man, probably in his late twenties, early thirties. He actually reminded her of Evan looks wise. Only he had dark brown hair.

"She's a good find Bob," said Mr. Rockford. "Probably the most organized and driven candidate we had apply."

"Well I look forward to working with you then," said Robert as he smiled at Casey.

She smiled back.

Casey and Mr. Rockford left Robert's office and he showed Casey her office which was right next door. It was a beautiful office with a large desk and computer for her to work on.

"I would love for you to start on Monday, the thirty-first," said Mr. Rockford as they made their way back up the hallway. "So as long as the paperwork looks good you're free to start at eight am."

"Sounds great," said Casey as they approached his assistant's desk.

"Here are the papers," said Mr. Rockford handing them to her. "Just bring them back Monday and we'll start some orientation things then."

"OK," said Casey happily as she took the papers. "Thank you so much for this opportunity."

"You're welcome," Mr. Rockford replied. "I will see you on Monday."

Casey shook his hand and made her way to the elevator. She felt like skipping to her car she was so happy. Sure it wasn't her dream job but it was a job. And it was something in the corporate world which she was happy with. She couldn't wait to go home and tell Cappie.

* * *

**_A/N: Nothing to say yet LoL!_**

**_Off to Chapter 35........._**


	35. The Beginning

THE BEGINNING

"Cap!" yelled Casey as she opened the door and came into the house.

"In here," Cappie replied from the living room.

Casey walked in and instantly was disappointed. Cappie was sitting on the couch in his boxers watching TV. An empty cereal bowel was on the table in front of him.

"You haven't even gotten dressed yet?" she asked somewhat irritated. "It's almost two in the afternoon."

"I don't have anywhere to be," he replied not noticing Casey's frustration. "So there is no need to get dressed."

Casey grunted as she sat on the couch next to him.

"So," Cappie continued. "How was the interview?"

"I got the job," said Casey brightening her face up a little.

"That's great Case!" said Cappie giving her a hug. "I'm proud of you."

"Thanks," she replied.

"So what are you going to be doing exactly?"

"Well I'm the assistant to this guy named Robert," she replied. "From the job description they gave me it looks like I'll be doing a little bit of data entry, word processing, appointment scheduling and personal errands for him."

"So what is this Robert guy like?" Cappie asked.

"I don't know, you're typical boss of a company I guess," Casey replied. "He seemed really nice when I him. Kind of reminded me of Evan in the looks department but he's taller and has dark hair."

Cappie became just a tad bit jealous when Casey described this Robert character. He scooted closer to her and began to nibble on her neck.

"And if I remember correctly you get your own office," he said as he gave her soft kisses on her neck.

"Yes," she replied trying to ignore the tingling feeling Cappie's kisses were sending down her spine.

"Well," said Cappie sitting up to look into her eyes. "If you ever want to fulfill a fantasy of hot love making on your desk I'm all for that."

He leaned in and kissed her.

"That sounds like more of a fantasy for you than me," Casey said smiling as she backed away from him.

"OK, you got me," said Cappie with an evil smile as he again leaned in to kiss her.

The next thing Casey knew her clothes and Cappie's boxers were scattered all over the bedroom floor and they were wrapped up together panting from the amazing sex they just had. Cappie was an amazing lover. He knew just the right spots to kiss and touch that drove her absolutely crazy. Sex had become less awkward and more frequent between the two of them lately. Since they both realized the baby wouldn't be hurt they were able to relax a little bit more.

"I love you Cap," said Casey as her breathing began to return to normal.

"I love you too Case," he replied.

After a few minutes Casey was almost asleep when Cappie began to talk.

"I don't know why you want to go off and get a job Case," he said rubbing his hand up and down her arm. "This could be our lives. We could sleep in every day and make love whenever we want to. And then once the baby is born we could help each other out. We could both be stay-at-home parents."

"Cap, that is very unrealistic," Casey replied. "You even said it yourself, the money you have isn't going to have us set for life. I have a better peace of mind knowing that I have a job and can provide money for my family."

"So does that mean I can be the stay-at-home dad?" Cappie asked with a smile.

"No," Casey replied quickly. "We both have to have jobs."

Cappie grunted as he loosened his grip on Casey.

"Why does everything have to be so set in stone with you?" he asked. "Why can't we just take one day at a time? See how your job goes and then we'll go from there."

"So you don't have any intentions of getting a job then?" Casey asked as she sat up and breaking away from Cappie's grasp.

"I never said that," he replied. "I just feel that right now we are doing fine, there is no need to put added stress on the future when you don't even know what is going to happen."

Casey sighed.

"I guess you're right," she said lying back down in Cappie's arms.

"If you ask me," said Cappie wrapping his arms around Casey again. "The future looks very bright for our little one. She's got a great family, a great house and all of life's essentials that she needs."

"I know," Casey replied. "I would just feel more comfortable if you were a little more serious about getting a job."

"Alright," Cappie sighed. "I'll start looking for jobs next week. But I can't guarantee that I'll find one that I like or even get one. But I will look."

"I can deal with that for now," Casey replied.

He kissed the top of her head as she burrowed deeper into his chest to fall asleep. She was beginning to have small doubts about Cappie. He seemed so focused when it came to buying the house and asking her to marry him. But she couldn't understand why he was so hesitant in getting a job. Wasn't he thinking about what's best for the family?

Casey just closed her eyes and tried to shake all thoughts about it out of her head. She loved Cappie and he loved her. And he did promise to start looking for jobs next week. She just prayed that everything would be settled soon and she wouldn't have to worry about it anymore.

* * *

Casey sat at her desk at work putting pages and pages of data into the computer. She had been at her new job for two weeks now. The work wasn't very challenging but she did enjoy her job. It was the first week of June and the hot weather outside was killing her. Being pregnant in the dead of summer was not pleasant but she was trying to make the best of it. Her feet were starting to swell. She has to put them up on the table every night when she comes home from work. Wearing high heels have become a thing of the past. She now goes for the most comfortable shoes she can get away with in the office.

Cappie still doesn't have a job. She has to give him a little credit for trying though. He did go on one job interview last week to the local newspaper and another earlier this week for an advertising company. But she knew that even if either of them called back and offered him the job he would turn it down. Cappie seemed perfectly content just staying home and doing much of nothing. Well, that wasn't always the case. He did help out a lot around the house by doing the laundry and other housework so Casey didn't have to. It was a small compromise for her having to work forty hours a week and him not working at all. Suddenly, Casey's phone rang.

"Hello," she said.

"Hi sweetheart," said Cappie. "Would you be free to meet up for lunch?"

Casey sighed.

"I think I'll be eating lunch at my desk today Cap," she replied. "I have to get these numbers entered in the computer by the end of the day."

"You know I'm really starting to hate this job," said Cappie sternly. "You've blown me off for lunch every day this week."

"Sorry Cap," she replied. "I just-"

"Casey," her intercom rang.

"Hold on Cap," she said. "Yes Robert," Casey said into the intercom.

"I need to you to come into my office," Robert replied. "I need your opinion on something. And bring me a cup of coffee while you're at it."

"OK Bob, be right there," Casey replied. "Sorry hun," she returned to the phone. "I'll try to call you later but if I don't I'll see you when I get home tonight."

"Remember you're pregnant Case," said Cappie sternly. "Don't let that douche work you too hard."

"He doesn't," Casey replied. "Now I have to go. I love you."

"Love you too," Cappie replied sadly.

Casey hung up the phone and went to the break room. She got Robert his coffee: one and a half creams and two spoonfuls of sugar, just the way he likes it. She approached his office door and knocked quietly.

"Come on in Casey," he said from inside.

She walked in and handed him his coffee.

"Thank you Casey," he said. "Please, have a seat."

Casey sat down in a chair next to his desk.

"I came up with this new design for the website," he continued handing Casey some printouts. "I was wondering what you thought of them."

"Well," said Casey observing them. "I think they're good. The one thing I would change though is to make the search feature a little larger. It's usually the first thing people go for when they come to the website and I think it should be easier for them to access."

Robert just stared at Casey intently as she handed the papers back to him.

"You know," he said still staring at her. "You have a lot of great ideas. No one else mentioned that when I showed it to them."

"Thank you," said Casey somewhat caught off guard by his comment.

"It's really been great working together," Robert continued as he leaned against his desk.

Robert continued to stare at Casey making her just a little bit uncomfortable.

"Yeah, we do work well together," Casey muttered looking away from his eyes.

"So how are you feeling?" he asked changing the subject. "How is the baby?"

"Everything is just fine, I feel fine," Casey said thinking his questions were starting to get a little too personal.

"And how about your fiancé? Has he found a job yet?"

Casey instantly regretted telling Robert anything about her personal life. She was just so upset with Cappie earlier this week and Robert was the first one to notice she was upset. So she told him about Cappie's lack of motivation. Big mistake.

"He's gone on a few interviews," she replied. "But no job yet."

"I'm sorry Case," he said softly.

Case? What was he calling her Case for? No one but close friends and family called her Case. Casey stood up realizing that she needed to get out of his office sooner than later.

"I really should get back to that data entry," she said walking towards the door. "It needs to be in by the end of the day."

"OK," he replied walking her to the door. "And Casey?"

She turned to look at him. Robert put his right hand on her shoulder and gently rubbed it.

"If you need anything," he continued staring deeply into her eyes. "You let me know."

"Thanks," she replied as she walked out and shut the door as quickly as she could.

Casey went back to her office and shut the door. She sat down in her chair and rested her head in her hands. What just happened? Did her boss just try to come on to her? No, he was just being friendly that's all. Suddenly she felt the baby kick.

"I know," she said softly rubbing her stomach. "Mommy's going to have to keep an eye on this."

* * *

**_A/N: What do you guys think about another three chapter night????_**

**_I think because you are AMAZING readers I'll go ahead and post three :0)_**

**_Off to Chapter 36......._**


	36. Crosstown Traffic

CROSSTOWN TRAFFIC

Casey didn't come home that night until after eight o'clock. Cappie was at the kitchen table paying some bills when she came in.

"Where in the hell have you been?" he asked as soon as he saw her.

"Sorry Cap," she said putting down her briefcase. "The data entry took much longer than I thought it would. And I couldn't leave until it was done."

"This is ridiculous," said Cappie as he set the bills aside. "You didn't even call to let me know."

"I know," Casey replied taking off her shoes and walking over to the couch. "I'm sorry, I just got caught up with everything."

"I don't like you alone in that building this late at night," he said coming over to the couch to sit next to her. "Something could have happened to you."

"I wasn't alone," she replied. "Robert stayed with me. And he walked me out to my car when I left."

Cappie just glared at her.

"Look, I don't want to argue about this," said Casey putting her aching and swollen feet up on the coffee table. "I just want to relax and forget today even happened."

Cappie just sighed not wanting to argue with Casey either.

"Can I get you something to eat?" he asked.

"Robert actually ordered a pizza for dinner," Casey replied. "So I'm not really that hungry."

"Oh," was all Cappie replied.

"So what did you do today?" Casey asked trying to change the subject.

"I did some things around the house here," Cappie replied. "And I was just finishing paying the bills when you came home."

"That's good," said Casey as she rested her head back on the couch.

"Did that douche at least tell you that you can come in a little later tomorrow for staying so late tonight?" Cappie asked.

"No," Casey replied. "I still have to be there at eight."

Cappie just rolled his eyes and shook his head.

"Look, things might be different if you had a job too," said Casey. "Then you would understand what I am going through."

"Oh I completely understand what you are going through," Cappie said bitterly. "You're going through the point where the handsome, money making boss tries to get closer to his assistant by making her stay late all of the time."

"You watch too many movies," Casey snapped. "And this was my first night staying this late so don't try to say this has been an everyday thing."

"Case this is only your second week there!" said Cappie somewhat raising his voice. "And every day you seem to get home a little bit later and later. At first it was just ten to fifteen minutes. And now we've worked up to over three hours tonight. I just don't like the way this is going."

"Look Cap, I'm just doing my job," said Casey standing up. "Once you get your act together and get a job then maybe you'll have some grounds to argue with me about this. But until then I would appreciate if you just stay out of it."

"I'm sorry for caring about you!" Casey heard Cappie yell as she headed up the stairs.

Casey changed into her pajamas and climbed into bed. Her feet hurt so badly and she was now beginning to get a headache. She shut her eyes tightly trying to fight back the tears. The thing she was most upset about was the fact that Cappie was right. It did seem like her boss has some sort of crush on her, which makes absolutely no sense given the fact that she's pregnant. She tried her best to stay away from him while they worked after hours. But he was always finding an excuse to stop into her office. He never really crossed way over the line. The only thing he did was rest his hand on her shoulder several times as he would glance at her computer screen if she had a question about something. But there was just something about the way that he touched her and the way that he looked at her that made Casey feel really uneasy. The tears started to fall from her eyes. Not only was her new boss starting to stress her out but the fact that Cappie still didn't have a job made her want to pull her hair out. Why couldn't things just be normal in her life for once? But when you have a surprise pregnancy in your life everything is anything but normal after that. Casey rubbed her stomach as she felt Cappie climb into bed next to her. He just stared at her at first, pushing a piece of hair behind her ear.

"I'm sorry for jumping to conclusions," he said finally. "You know that I love you and it just kills me to see you so stressed out and upset."

Casey opened her eyes to look at him. She wanted to tell him that he was right, that he did have a reason to be concerned about Robert. But she didn't. This was something that she was going to have to handle on her own.

"I'm sorry for not calling," she said softly. "I should have checked in with you."

"It's OK," he replied.

Casey scooted closer to Cappie so she could rest her head on his chest. He wrapped his arms around her and instantly Casey felt a little bit better. As much as Cappie disappointed her when it came to getting a job he still was the love of her life. She still pictured forever with him. She felt so safe and content with his arms wrapped around her. She soon fell asleep, leaving all of her thoughts for another day.

* * *

"Casey I need you in my office please," Robert said over the intercom.

Casey sighed as she got up and made her way next door to his office. It was her third week of work and things were starting to go better. Robert appeared to take Casey's coldness to his advances to heart and hadn't tried anything inappropriate the past few days. She was beginning to feel a little less stressed about the situation which in turned helped her situation at home with Cappie.

"Case, we have an emergency," Robert said as she entered his office.

There he said her nickname again. She hated when he called her that. It just seemed so unprofessional for him to be calling her that. Eventually she needed to tell him to stop. But he seemed pretty distraught so she decided this wasn't the best time.

"What's wrong?" Casey asked.

"I just got a call from our office in Cleveland," he said. "Their entire server is down and they need me there ASAP to fix it."

"Do you need me to book you a flight?" she asked.

"Not just me," he replied. "You're coming too."

"What?" Casey asked him becoming very confused.

"I need an extra set of hands there with me," he replied. "Even after I get the server back up everything is going to have to be re-entered and I can't do that by myself."

"I don't know if I should be flying being pregnant and all," said Casey trying to come up with any excuse for not having to go.

"You're fine," Robert replied. "I looked up pregnancy and air travel online a second ago. The only restriction the airline has is that you can't fly three weeks before your due date. And you've got a few months so there's nothing to worry about."

Casey began to nervously shift her weight from side to side. She did not want to go to Cleveland alone with Robert. But what was she to do? Was she going to lose her job if she said no?

"Um, how long are we going to be there?" she asked. "Because I have a doctor's appointment on Friday that I can't miss."

She lied. But it was the only excuse she could come up with at the moment since the flying excuse didn't go over so well.

"That's not a problem," he replied. "We should be back tomorrow. And if for some reason it takes longer I'll put you back here on a plane Thursday so you can make your appointment and I'll stay if I have to."

Casey still stood there in shock. She didn't know what to say.

"Please Casey," he said. "I really need your help."

Casey took a deep breath.

"How soon do we have to leave?" she asked regrettably.

"As soon as we can get a flight," he replied. "Why don't you go back to your office and see what you can find for flights and book us the earliest one. First class of course, I don't fly anything but first class anymore. And maybe call your fiancé and see if he can bring you a bag. If not we can always stop at your house on the way to the airport."

"OK," said Casey as she slowly walked back to her office.

She went in and shut the door. She walked over to her desk and collapsed in the chair.

"_OK Casey, deep breaths_," she told herself. "_This trip is strictly business. There is a crisis in Cleveland and that is what we are going for. Robert doesn't have any ulterior motives_."

She first got on the computer and booked a 6:20 flight from Chicago to Cleveland for her and Robert. She communicated with him over the intercom the details so she didn't have to go back into his office. Then she picked up the phone to call Cappie.

"Hello beautiful," Cappie said answering the phone noticing it was her number.

"Hi babe," she replied softly.

"Case, I can't wait until you get home tonight," said Cappie excitedly. "I have the greatest news."

"Really?" asked Casey. "What news?"

"I want to tell you in person," he replied. "So hurry home soon."

"Actually that is why I was calling," said Casey softly. "I'm not coming home tonight."

"Alright Case, I draw the line when they have you sleep over in that building," said Cappie frustrated.

"No, no," Casey replied with a little chuckle at Cappie's assumption. "I have to go on a business trip for the night. I should be back tomorrow."

"What? There was no indication this job had any travelling involved in the description," said Cappie.

"I know," Casey replied. "But there is a crisis in Cleveland and Robert needs an extra pair of hands out there to help him."

"Extra pair of hands my ass," Cappie replied.

"Look, the tickets are already booked. What is done is done," said Casey. "I-"

"Are you even safe to fly?" interrupted Cappie. "I don't think pregnant women should be flying."

"Apparently there is nothing wrong with flying unless you are within a month of your due date," Casey replied.

"Well I would feel more comfortable if you checked with the doctor," Cappie replied.

"I'll call Dr. Kline after I get off the phone with you," Casey replied. "Just to make you feel better."

Cappie sighed loudly into the phone.

"I'm just so pissed," he said. "Did you know that I'm standing here in the kitchen cooking a nice dinner for the two of us for when you get home? I was going to put candles out all over the house and tell you my exciting news and make love to you all night long."

Now Casey sighed.

"That sounds so much better than flying to Cleveland," she said. "But I have to do this."

"I know," Cappie replied softly as he turned off the stove. "Do you need me to bring you some clothes?"

"Could you?" Casey asked. "My flight leaves at 6:20 so just as long as you're here by four you should be fine."

"I'll see you around four then," said Cappie sadly.

"I'm sorry Cap," Casey replied. "I'll make it up to you, I promise."

"Bye," was all Cappie said as he hung up the phone.

* * *

Robert and Casey were standing outside of the Orbitz building waiting for their ride and Cappie to show up with Casey's bag.

"He said he would be here by four," said Casey looking at her watch. "I expect him any second."

"Well here is our car," said Robert as a black sedan pulled up next to them. "We really need to get going."

"I can't go without my things," said Casey as she pulled out her cell phone to try and call Cappie.

But she didn't get very far. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Cappie hurrying towards them, wheeling her suitcase behind him.

"I'm so sorry honey," he said approaching them. "I got stuck in the worst traffic and then I couldn't find anywhere to park. Finally I just found a spot way down the street and walked the rest of the way."

"Thanks," said Casey as she took the suitcase from Cappie.

The driver of the car took the suitcase from Casey so he could put it in the trunk with Robert's.

"Come on Case, we really need to get going," said Robert approaching her.

Cappie got a sour look on his face. He did not just hear this guy call her Case.

"Oh Robert this is my fiancé Cappie," said Casey. "Cappie this is Robert."

"Nice to meet you," said Robert shaking Cappie's hand.

"Wish I could say the same," Cappie sneered back at him.

Robert shrugged Cappie's comment off and headed towards the car.

"I've gotta go," said Casey turning to Cappie. "I'll call you later tonight."

Cappie pulled Casey tightly up to him and passionately kissed her, making sure Robert saw the whole thing. He just wanted to make sure Robert knew that Casey was his and only his.

"I love you," Cappie said as Casey backed away.

"I love you too," she replied. "I'll see you tomorrow."

With that Casey got into the car behind Robert. She stared at Cappie out of the window. He looked so sad standing there by himself. His look reminded her of a little kid who just lost his dog. She felt really bad about ruining any plans he had for her tonight. The two of them locked eyes as the car started off towards the airport.

Cappie lifted up his hand to give Casey a small wave. He didn't like any part of this trip that was spontaneously planned. But he knew that Casey wouldn't have gone if she was in any danger. He trusted her. But deep down it was Robert he didn't trust. Just hearing him call her Case made all of the hairs rise on the back of his neck. There was just something about that guy that was very, very wrong.

* * *

**_A/N: Soooooo......what did you guys think of the THREE chapters???? _**

**_I hope you liked them! Keep the reviews coming, I love to read them :0)_**

**_I've got two more chapters ready to go for tomorrow but no sneak peek.....sorry, I wasn't sure what to write without giving away too much.....haha._**


	37. Call Me

CALL ME

Casey and Robert sat silently for most of the plane ride to Cleveland. Cappie had actually thrown her IPod and headphones in her bag so it gave her an excuse to not have to talk to Robert. They went straight to the corporate office when they got off of the plane.

"This could be a long night, sorry Case," said Robert as they opened the door and walked in.

For the next two hours Robert sat diligently at the computer trying to fix the servers and get things up and running. There wasn't much for Casey to do the first hour. But she was slowly getting to enter more and more things as Robert made progress. She was thankful that he was so into his work. It was like he went off to another world when he was at the computer. He barely said two words to her.

Finally he sat back in the chair and sighed.

"I think I've done just about everything I can do tonight," he said. "Why don't we call it a night and go and get some dinner. I'm starving."

"OK," Casey replied. She was very hungry herself.

The two of them got into the rental car and drove to the Blue Pointe Grille, a restaurant not far from the hotel they were staying at.

They ordered their meals and began to awkwardly sip at their drinks, each really not knowing what to say. Casey finally decided to break the silence.

"So how much work do you think you have left?" she asked.

"Um," said Robert as he thought about it. "At least three or four more hours. But if we get in there early enough tomorrow we should be able to make the six o'clock flight home."

"That's great," Casey replied. "I'm glad you've been able to figure things out."

"Of course I can figure it out," Robert replied. "That's why I'm the director."

Casey just nodded her head at his last cocky remark. There was nothing really for her to respond.

"So I got to finally meet that Cappie character," he said taking a sip of his beer.

"He's not a character," said Casey sternly. "He's my fiancé."

"Who cares," said Robert in a disgusted tone. "The guy is a deadbeat. You could do so much better."

Casey was torn on how to respond. On one hand she wanted to change the subject and not talk about her love life with her boss. But on the other hand she wanted to defend Cappie to this douche bag.

"You know you're only with him because you're pregnant Case," he said. "I mean, take one look at him compared to you. There is no comparison. He's one lucky bastard for trapping you to be with him."

"Excuse me," said Casey raising her voice a bit. "How dare you say these things to me! I've never dealt with anyone more unprofessional in my life."

"Sweetheart we are not on the clock," he said reaching across the table for her hand. "This is more of a date than a business meeting."

Casey pulled her hand away from his quickly and leaned back in her chair.

"You are making me really uncomfortable Bob," she said. "I would really appreciate it we don't talk about my personal life."

"Fine," said Robert putting his hands up where she could see them. "I'm sorry. I just got a little carried away. It's just hard for me to look at someone as beautiful as you and see you with someone like him. You're supposed to be with someone like me. Someone rich, handsome, and powerful."

"Well I thank you for your concern," said Casey. "But it really isn't needed. I love Cappie and I would love Cappie whether I was carrying this baby or not."

"Yes, but you still have issues with him not having a job," Robert replied with a shrug.

Casey took a deep breath as she looked at Robert.

"You're right," she said. "If there is one thing I could change about him is his focus when it comes to getting a job."

"Oh the joys of love," said Robert with a smile.

"Speaking of love," said Casey. "We've never talked about your personal life. You sure know enough about mine. What is going on with yours?"

Robert let out a little chuckle.

"Well I haven't talked about it because there is nothing to tell," he replied. "No girl has captured my heart since Sandy."

Casey looked at Robert as he got a solemn look on his face as he said her name.

"Who is Sandy?" Casey asked.

Robert looked up at her. She could tell his eyes had changed to a much softer tone. Whoever Sandy was, she really has an effect on him.

"Sandy is my wife or ex-wife, however you define it," he said softly.

"What do you mean?" Casey asked.

"She passed away from cancer over a year ago," he replied. "It was a really emotional time to go through. That's probably why I poured so much time and energy into my work. It helped me with her loss and being able to move on."

Casey instantly felt bad for Robert. She couldn't even imagine what he had to go through with his wife being sick and then passing away. Robert's hand was still extended on the table. She reached her hand up on the table and covered his.

"I'm really sorry," she said softly.

"It's OK," Robert replied trying to toughen back up. "That's in the past. It's time to move forward now."

"Yeah but it must be hard-" said Casey.

"It is," Robert interrupted her. "But can we not talk about it. It's still a pretty sensitive subject."

"Oh, OK," Casey replied.

Moments later their meals had arrived. Casey took her hand off of Robert's as the waitress set her chicken alfredo in front of her. The two of them talked mostly about work during dinner. Robert paid for the meal on the company's tab and the two of them headed to the hotel to get some rest.

"So what time should I aim to be ready in the morning?" asked Casey as they approached her room.

Robert thought about it for a second.

"I would say to be ready around eight," he replied. "We can then go downstairs and get some breakfast before heading over to the corporate office."

"OK," said Casey. "Well here is my room, 525."

"What is my number?" Robert asked checking his room card. "530, so I'll be down the hall if you need anything."

"I'll be fine," said Casey as she put her card key in to open the door.

"Hey Casey," Robert said approaching her.

Casey turned to face him.

"Can I ask you a favor?"

"Sure, I guess," said Casey giving him a quizzical look.

"I just want to make sure two things from tonight stay just between the two of us," he said. "The first is about Sandy. No one around the office really knows about her and I really don't want a lot of people to know."

"OK," said Casey nodding her head. "And what is the second thing?"

"This," said Robert as he pulled Casey towards him and began passionately kissing her on the lips.

Casey tried her best not to respond. She tried to push him off of her but he was stronger than she anticipated. Finally, he broke away. Casey stood there completely speechless.

"Goodnight," he said with a smile as he hurried down the hall and into his room.

Casey walked into her room and sat down on the bed.

"Ew, ew, ew," she said taking her hand and wiping off her lips trying to get the feeling of Robert's lips off of hers.

The feeling was nauseating. Why in the hell did he have to go and do something like this? He took advantage of her letting her guard down once he told her about his wife. Casey became upset with herself. She never should have let her guard down. Casey kicked her shoes off and walked into the bathroom. She splashed her face with some water in the sink trying to calm herself down. She needed this job. Her health insurance benefits were going to kick in next week and since Cappie didn't have a job there was no way he could get any health benefits. Casey rubbed her stomach thinking about the baby. The baby deserved everything she could possibly give her. She became even more nauseated thinking about putting up with Robert's advances just to provide for her child. But as a mother she has to make sacrifices and do everything she can for the baby. Casey took her clothes off and got into the shower, hoping she could wash Robert off of her. She stood in the shower letting the warm water run down her body. She eventually noticed the water was beginning to mix with her tears. She couldn't help but cry. She was really in a situation no one else would understand. As she continued to wash in the shower Cappie's ring tone was playing loudly on her phone out in the bedroom. But Casey didn't hear it. And even after her shower Casey never listened to the voicemail he had left her. As soon as she got her pajamas on she collapsed into the bed and cried herself to sleep.

* * *

**_A/N: So it certainly seems that everyone either hates Robert or thinks he's a douche bag......which is a good thing because that is the kind of character I want him to be LoL_**

**_And this chapter probably didn't help his chances of gaining any popularity......haha._**

**_Off to Chapter 38............_**

**_P.S....Aha Shake Heartbreak.....how crazy is it that Robert entered the story the same time you broke up with a guy named Robert??......hope everything is OK!_**


	38. When You're Gone

WHEN YOU'RE GONE

Casey's cell phone ringing woke her up the next morning. It was Robert.

"Are you almost ready?" he asked. "It's after eight."

Casey sat up in the bed and looked at the clock.

"Oh my god," she said. "I'm sorry Bob, I didn't set my alarm last night. I can be ready in fifteen minutes."

"Take your time," said Robert. "I'll be downstairs in the dining room having breakfast. Just come find me when you're ready."

"OK, Thanks Bob," Casey replied hanging up the phone.

She then noticed she had a voicemail and instantly knew who it was from. She entered her password and the voicemail began to play.

"_Hi sweetheart, it's me_," said Cappie in a sad voice. "_You must be in bed already. Just wanted to call and let you know that I miss you and I'm thinking about you. It's going to be pretty lonely tonight. Anyway, I can't wait to see you when you come home. Call me when you get the chance. I love you_."

"I love you too," Casey said softly out loud as she hung up the phone.

Casey felt horrible for not calling Cappie last night, even after she told him she would. Things last night just got too complicated and too crazy. She wished she had answered the phone though. Hearing his voice probably would have made her feel better. But at the same time, he didn't need to hear her crying on the phone and she wasn't able to control her emotions at all last night.

Casey shook her head out of her thoughts and got dressed. She packed up her bag and headed down to the dining room to meet Robert.

"Good morning," said Robert as Casey approached his table in the dining room.

"Morning," she replied sitting down.

"I ordered you an orange juice, I hope that's OK," he said.

"Thanks," Casey replied avoiding eye contact with him.

"So how did you sleep last night?" Robert asked as the waiter brought them some pancakes.

Casey couldn't believe it. Here Robert was just trying to go on like nothing happened last night. But on the same token she didn't want to talk about it. As far as she was concerned it was a onetime thing and will never happen again.

"I slept fine," she lied. "And how about you?"

"Good," was all Robert replied.

The two of them ate breakfast mostly in silence. Soon after, they headed back to the corporate office to begin more work on the server. The office had a completely different atmosphere this morning compared to last night. There were people rushing all over the place, phones ringing off the hook and copy machine's buzzing. Casey was thankful that this prevented any further alone time with Robert.

After working for a few hours the two of them decided to break away for lunch with a friend of Robert's.

"Yeah, who knew Ted and I would end up working for the same company one day," said Robert as they entered the restaurant. "We went from college roommates to co-workers."

"But let's not forget you got promoted to the big job in Chicago while I'm still stuck here in Cleveland though," Ted replied as they took their seats.

"I guess they just knew who the better man was," said Robert half jokingly.

"So Casey," said Ted turning to her. "How long have you worked with the company?"

"Oh just a few weeks," Casey replied. "Still trying to learn my way around everything."

"Well you have a good teacher," said Ted looking at Robert. "He's taught me a lot through the years."

The three of them ordered their food and drinks and continued the conversation.

"Ted and I still keep up by e-mail," said Robert. "He's always whining to me about his girlfriend."

"Hey, at least I have one," said Ted. "I can't remember the last time you had one."

"Just keeping my options open," Robert replied.

"Come on dude, it's been like three years since you've had a serious girlfriend. It's about time you put yourself back on the market," said Ted.

Casey was confused by Ted's last remark. Robert had told her Sandy had passed away just over a year ago. But she shrugged it off. Ted was talking about girlfriends; Sandy was his wife, so he must not have put her in the same category.

"I see a nice ring on your finger Casey," continued Ted. "Who's your lucky guy?"

"His name is Cappie," said Casey with a smile. "And the father of my little bundle of joy on the way."

"That's great," Ted replied. "Good luck with that."

Casey could get a sense that Ted knew a little bit more about her personal life then he was leading on.

"I'm going to go to the ladies' room," said Casey excusing herself from the table.

Ted turned to Robert as soon as she was out of sight.

"She is pretty smoking hot dude," he said to Robert. "Especially being pregnant and all."

"I know," Robert replied. "I just wish she didn't have that deadbeat fiancé. The guy does nothing but sit at home all day."

"You already told me this," said Ted. "The 'jobless douche bag' is what I believe you called him in your last e-mail."

"Haha," Robert replied. "Yeah, that's him."

"So have you made a move yet?" Ted asked.

"Last night," Robert replied. "I kissed her outside of her hotel room."

"And how did that go?"

"As good as could be expected," Robert replied. "I think it flustered her quite a bit. I had to wake her up this morning as she forgot to set her alarm before bed."

"Nice," was all Ted replied as he noticed Casey was making her way back to the table.

Their food came soon after and eventually the three headed back to the office to finish up the work. Casey entered data for hours. Pretty soon five o'clock rolled around and she realized they weren't going to be making the six o'clock plane home.

"How much longer?" she asked Robert.

"Probably another hour," he replied.

"Should I go ahead and book us on the nine o'clock flight then?" Casey asked.

"Yeah, sounds good," he replied.

Almost an hour later on the dot Robert finally finished his work. He ran a few tests to see if everything was working OK before they left. He approached Casey as she was shutting down the computer she was working on.

"I just want to thank you Casey," he said putting his hands on her shoulders from behind her. "You have been such a big help on this trip. I don't know what I would have done without you."

Casey tensed up as he began to rub her shoulders.

"Thanks," she said standing up so he would have to let go of her shoulders. "Just doing my job."

She was glad when Robert went back to his computer to see if the tests had worked.

"Alright," he said. "I'm satisfied. Let's head off to the airport."

The two of them drove to the airport and dropped off the rental car.

"I told you I don't fly coach," said Robert noticing their seats weren't first class when they checked in.

"Sorry," said Casey. "But all of the first class was booked. I just figured you would want to get home."

"Correction," he said. "You want to get home. I don't have anything to get home to."

"Fine then," she replied angrily. "I wanted to get home then."

Robert was frustrated he had to sit in coach but there was nothing he could do about it at this point. The two of them eventually boarded the plane and sat together in their coach seats towards the back of the plane.

"You see there is no room in coach," said Robert as he touched Casey's leg with his own.

Casey tried to move her leg away but he just kept moving his closer to hers. She quickly got out her IPod trying to ignore Robert as the plane took off. She was lost in a song by Chris Daughtry when suddenly she felt his hand on her leg.

"You have the softest legs," he mumbled to her as he rubbed the inside of her knee.

Casey pretended she didn't hear him the best she could and turned to look out the window. Eventually he removed his hand from her leg and the rest of the plane ride was rather uneventful until she had to take her IPod off for the landing. She put her IPod away and faced forward in her seat, again avoiding all eye contact with Robert.

"I hope you're not scared of landings," Robert softly whispered into Casey's ear as he put his arm around her and began kissing her neck.

"Bob what are you doing?" Casey asked as she tried to lean towards the window to get away from him. But she couldn't get far enough away.

"I'm just showing you how you deserve to be treated," he replied this time moving his kisses to her cheek.

"Seriously, stop," she said using her arm to push him off. "I have a fiancé who treats me just well thank you very much."

"Oh please, that deadbeat is probably half the lover I could be to you," said Robert as he leaned back over to Casey and began to nibble on her ear.

"I said stop already," Casey said trying not to raise her voice and make a scene. "Or I'll-"

"Or you'll what?" interrupted Robert as he backed away from her. "Tell Mr. Rockford? Report me to human resources?"

Casey didn't respond.

"You can do whatever you want," he said leaning back over to her. "But I've got twenty times more power in that company than you do. Who do you think they'll believe?"

Casey still didn't respond. She was clenching her fists and shutting her eyes tight trying to think of better thoughts than Robert currently kissing her neck.

"To answer the question," Robert continued softly. "They are going to believe me. Not you. And then you'll lose your job. And with your job goes your health insurance and continues with a miserable life for you, Crappie and the baby. Think about that before you go tattling on me."

Tears started to form in Casey's eyes. She squeezed her eyes shut even more to prevent them from coming. She sat there as stiff as a statue just taking the kisses Robert was giving her and trying not to notice his hands roaming her body. Finally, after what seemed like hours the plane landed and Robert backed away to get his bags out of the overhead compartment. The two of them walked off of the plane and towards the door.

"Well I'll see you at work tomorrow Bob," said Casey.

"Aren't you going to ride back with me?" Robert asked pointing to the car waiting for them.

"Oh no, I didn't tell you," Casey lied. "Cappie is going to pick me up. We are going to grab a late dinner."

She had to come up with some kind of excuse. There was no way she was going to be alone in the car with him. Things were getting way out of hand.

"Alright," he said walking up to her. "I'll see you tomorrow."

He leaned in and gave her a quick kiss on the lips, which she did not return, and a pat on her butt. He gave her his patent evil smile as he walked away and got into the car. Casey found a bench near the luggage return and sat down. She was fighting back tears in her eyes. She couldn't believe that Robert had just threatened her back in the plane. Who did he think she was? Some sort of weak girl who didn't stand up for herself? But Casey quickly sank her shoulders down realizing that was exactly who she was. Evan was right, putting the baby's needs before hers was making her absolutely miserable. She was slowly losing the person she had become. She, Casey Cartwright, who has always been in control, was now out of her league. She felt helpless. She thought about telling Cappie everything. There was no doubt in her mind that he would stand up for her. Honestly he probably would run down to the office and beat the shit out of Robert if he ever did find out. But that wasn't going to solve anything. He would probably be upset with her also which would probably end their relationship and probably cause her to go into a deep depression. Casey sighed as the baby kicked inside of her. Finally she opened her cell phone to call Cappie.

"Hi honey," she said as happily as she could. "I'm home, here at the airport. Do you think you could come get me?"

* * *

**_A/N: Oops, another cliffhanger........Is Casey going to tell Cappie?_**

**_Sorry no C/C scenes in these two chapters.....I think these are like the only two in the whole story there is none so have no fear._**

**_Also wanted to let you guys know that even though they graduated Ashleigh, Rebecca, Evan and Beaver all make appearances in later chapters :0)_**

**_Hope you guys liked these two chapters!_**

**_Sneak peek at tomorrow's two chapters......Rusty to the rescue!_**


	39. Ugly Truth

UGLY TRUTH

Casey sat on the bench at the airport for about forty minutes. She didn't mind the long wait actually. It gave her some time to think. Cappie didn't say much on the phone. She could tell that he was probably upset she hadn't called him to keep in the touch while she was on her trip. But she figured she would just explain to him how busy she was and hopefully he would understand.

Casey's phone rang.

"I'm here Case," said Cappie. "Where are you?"

"Hold on," Casey replied. "Let me step outside. I'm over near the Delta Airlines arrivals."

Casey walked outside and looked up and down the street. She didn't see Cappie's Jeep or her car anywhere.

"You must be in the wrong place," she said. "Because I can't see you."

"Oh but I can see you," said Cappie into the phone.

Casey continued to search up and down but there was no sign of Cappie.

"Look to your right," Cappie finally said.

"Cap, the only thing to my right is a parked Jeep but it's nothing like yours," she said glancing over.

Just then Cappie got out of the Jeep that was parked next to her and walked up to her. Casey gave him a confused look as she shut her phone.

"Go ahead," said Cappie approaching her and taking her suitcase. "Get in."

She watched Cappie put her bag in the trunk and slowly got into the passenger's seat. The Jeep certainly had the new car smell. Cappie got in and started the car.

"Before you go anywhere," said Casey putting her hand on top of Cappie's as he reached for the gearshift. "You need to tell me what's going on."

"Well it was a part of my surprise," said Cappie shrugging his shoulders at Casey. "I figured my old Jeep wasn't reliable or anywhere appropriate for transporting a baby. So I traded it in yesterday and got this. It's a 2009 model so I saved a little money but still brand new."

Casey looked around the car. It was certainly the typical soccer mom SUV but so much better than the run down Jeep with no roof Cappie had before.

"I don't know what to say," said Casey turning to look at Cappie. "This is perfect."

"How about letting me drive it?" said Cappie glancing down at her hand on the gearshift.

"Oh, sorry," said Casey as she took her hand away.

Cappie put the car in gear and pulled out of the airport. At first the drive was filled with silence. Casey looked over at Cappie who had his eyes glued to the road. She could tell he was avoiding eye contact with her.

"So everything in Cleveland got fixed," Casey finally said.

"That's nice," Cappie replied coldly.

Casey took a deep breath and rolled her eyes. This no talking thing was so second grade.

"So you want to tell me what is wrong?" she asked.

Cappie quickly glanced over and shot her a disapproving look before returning his eyes to the road.

"Come on Cap," she said. "I can't try to help if you don't tell me what's wrong."

"Well let's start off with explaining why you didn't call me then," said Cappie.

"I was busy," Casey replied. "We were at the office late and then grabbed some dinner and by the time I got back to the hotel room I showered and went straight to bed."

"It didn't have to be a long phone call Case," said Cappie. "All I wanted was to hear your voice to make sure that you and the baby were OK. I don't think that was too much to ask."

"I know," said Casey softly looking at the floor. "I'm sorry."

Cappie leaned over and put his hand on Casey's leg.

"It's OK," he said. "As long as you promise to call me the next time."

"Well I don't think there is going to be a next time," Casey replied.

Cappie turned to her and gave her a strange look.

"What's going on?" he asked.

Casey paused for a second and took a deep breath.

"Cap I need to tell you something," she said.

"Is this something I'm going to want to hear while I'm driving?" he asked noticing the change in Casey's voice.

"Probably not," Casey replied with a sigh.

"Well we'll be home in fifteen minutes," said Cappie as he increased the speed of the Jeep a little. "Let's hold off until then."

The two of them drove home the rest of the way in silence. Casey went back and forth in her head going over exactly how she was going to tell Cappie what was going on. But the only conclusion she came to was that there was really no easy way to do it.

Cappie pulled the Jeep into the garage and him and Casey went into the house. Casey went over and sat at the kitchen table and Cappie soon followed. He was waiting for her to say something. But Casey wasn't sure how to get the words out right.

"So?" he asked giving Casey an inpatient look.

"Cap, things aren't going so well with my job," Casey said. "I'm quitting."

"Well I can't say that I'm not happy about that," he said with a small smile. "But why the sudden change? You were just telling me the other day how much you liked it and how much we needed the job."

"The job itself isn't so bad," Casey replied. "I don't mind doing the work. Robert is the reason I'm quitting."

Casey looked at Cappie as she said her last sentence. He dropped his smile very quickly and anger immediately showed on his face.

"What about Robert?" he said in a very soft, cold tone.

"Um, well, first things were fine," said Casey. "But after a couple of weeks he started flirting with me. He would rub my shoulders and just look at me in a weird way. I thought at first I could handle it. I figured I would talk to him and tell him how inappropriate he was being and things would get better."

"And did you talk to him?" Cappie asked.

"Not really," said Casey. "This whole business trip came up so quickly that I really didn't get a chance."

Cappie just stared at Casey, not really knowing what to say or how to react.

"But things went from bad to worse on the business trip," said Casey now fighting back the tears.

"I knew you shouldn't have gone," said Cappie standing up and beginning to pace. "I knew this guy was a douche bag! What in the hell did he do to you Casey?"

"He kissed me," Casey said softly.

"What?!" Cappie screamed. "What in the hell is he thinking? Can't he find his own woman?"

"He did have someone," Casey stated. "He said his wife passed about a year ago. Maybe he's just grieving or something."

"Are you defending him?" Cappie asked sternly.

"No, no, not at all," Casey replied quickly. "There is no excuse for what he did."

"So then what's your excuse?" Cappie asked.

"What do you mean?" Casey asked.

"You knew he had some kind of feelings towards you before you went on this business trip. Why did you go?"

"I thought if I didn't I would lose the job," Casey replied.

"God Casey," said Cappie throwing his hands in the air. "Do you realize you could have been hurt? Do you realize he could have hurt the baby?"

"The baby was all I was thinking about when I decided to go on the trip," said Casey, tears now running down her face. "We needed the health insurance. That was the only thing keeping me in that job."

"What happened to you?" Cappie asked as he stopped pacing and turned to Casey.

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"The Casey I know and love would have never let another guy lay a hand on her like that," said Cappie. "You used to be so strong. What happened?"

"I'm still me," said Casey standing up and walking over to Cappie. "Nothing has changed. You have to believe me when I say that I only did this for the baby. She is my highest priority and all I want to do is give her the best life I possibly can. I—"

"Even if that means getting molested by your boss?" Cappie interrupted coldly.

Casey was silent. She didn't know how to respond to that question because Cappie was right, that is how it seemed. And when she really thought about it she realized how much of a mistake she had made.

Cappie was also silent. A part of him wanted to find Robert and just beat the living crap out of him. Another part of him was mad at Casey. How could she allow something like this to happen?

"I don't know what to say," Casey finally uttered.

"I am just so pissed Casey," said Cappie sitting back down at the kitchen table. "Why didn't you tell me this sooner? I'm going to be your husband someday, you should be able to trust me and tell me anything."

"I didn't think things were going to get this out of hand," she replied. "And quite frankly I was scared."

"What were you scared of?" Cappie asked. "You know that I'm always here to support you. The first time that creep laid a hand on you, you should have come to me and told me."

"I know," Casey replied also sitting back down in one of the kitchen chairs.

There was a brief silence. Casey finally looked Cappie right in the eyes.

"I'm sorry Cap," she said with a sniffle. "I never meant for any of this to happen. You're right, I should have come to you for help the very first time something happened. But I thought I could handle it on my own. But the minute I knew I couldn't handle it on my own anymore I came to you. That's why I'm telling you this now. I'm sorry."

Casey began to quietly sob. She buried her head in her arms on the table. She couldn't face Cappie. The disapproving and hurtful looks on his face were too hard for her to see. Casey heard Cappie scoot his chair closer to her and then he began to rub her back. She immediately turned to his shoulder and buried her head into it as she cried.

"I'm so sorry," she said between breaths. "I'm so sorry."

"Shhh, calm down," said Cappie softly as he now had both arms wrapped tightly around Casey.

Casey began to calm a bit and backed away from his shoulder.

"I love you," said Cappie. "And nothing is going to change that. Robert coming on to you wasn't your fault. But you not doing anything about it is the issue here. I'm glad that you told me tonight. And I think it's safe to say that quitting that job is a very good idea."

Casey just dove forward back into his shoulder.

"I love you too," she replied squeezing him tightly.

Casey backed away again as Cappie reached his hands up to wipe the tears off of her face.

"I'm coming with you tomorrow to go tell Mr. Rockford you quit," he said looking into her eyes.

"I wouldn't have it any other way," Casey replied.

Cappie leaned in and kissed Casey softly on the lips.

"I think we've both had enough excitement for one day," said Cappie. "Why don't we go to bed?"

Casey just nodded her head as the two of them headed upstairs to sleep.

* * *

**_A/N: Yay for Casey coming clean to Cappie :0)_**

**_Off to chapter 40........_**


	40. Ain't No Sunshine

AIN'T NO SUNSHINE

The next morning Cappie woke up to his cell phone ringing. He first turned over to see Casey wasn't in bed with him. But he then noticed the light on in the bathroom and realized she was in the shower. He leaned over to the nightstand and grabbed his phone.

"Hello?" he asked in a groggy tone.

"Hey Cap it's Rusty."

"What's up Spitter?" Cappie asked sitting up in the bed.

"I'm in town this morning running a few errands," he said. "I was wondering if you wanted to meet up for a coffee or something?"

"Anything in particular you want to talk about?" asked Cappie finding it somewhat strange Rusty was asking him to coffee.

"No," Rusty replied. "I'm just leaving this weekend to go back to CRU and wanted to see you one last time before I left."

"Oh, OK," Cappie replied.

"So are you available?" Rusty asked realizing Cappie wasn't going to add anything to his last response.

"Sure," Cappie replied. "Casey will probably join us too if that's OK."

"I thought she was working?" Rusty asked.

"Not anymore," said Cappie. "The two of us are going to her work this morning and giving them the big middle finger."

"Why? What happened?" asked Rusty.

"Complicated story Spitter," Cappie replied. "But basically her boss has been hitting on her and it's just not the best environment for her to be in."

"Wow, I had no idea," said Rusty.

"None of us did," Cappie replied. "She finally just came clean to me last night."

"Is she alright?"

"Yeah, she's fine," said Cappie. "So where did you want to meet up?"

"I'm not far from your house actually," Rusty replied. "Can I just stop over and we can all go together?"

"I guess," Cappie replied. "We'll see you in a bit."

"OK, bye," said Rusty hanging up the phone.

A few minutes later Casey came out of the bathroom and began to get dressed. Cappie got out of bed and walked over to her, putting his hands on her waist.

"Are you OK?" he whispered in her ear.

"I'm much better now that I have support," said Casey turning around and putting her arms around Cappie. "Thanks honey. I really appreciate what you're doing for me."

"Hey I'm just protecting my two favorite girls," said Cappie leaning down and giving her a soft kiss.

"You should probably get ready," she said after she kissed him back.

"I'll take a quick shower and we'll be on our way," he said kissing her forehead and going into the bathroom.

Casey was downstairs a few minutes later making some tea when the doorbell rang.

"Who on earth could that be?" she asked to herself as she walked to the door.

"Hey sis," said Rusty as she opened the door.

"Russ?" asked Casey giving him a hug. "What are you doing here?"

"I talked to Cappie a little bit ago," he replied. "We're going to go get some coffee since I'm heading back to CRU this weekend."

"You're heading back already?" Casey asked walking into the kitchen.

"Science never waits," Rusty replied with a smile as he followed her into the kitchen.

"Well I'm glad you came over and we can hang out a little bit," said Casey taking a sip of her tea.

"Me too," Rusty replied. "But what's going on with your work? Cappie told me you're quitting."

"Yeah, it's for the best," was all Casey replied.

Cappie came stomping down the stairs and into the kitchen.

"Spitter!" he said giving Rusty a hug. "Gosh, I feel like I haven't seen you in forever."

"We really need to get going," Casey interrupted as she looked at the clock.

The three of them got into the new Jeep and headed downtown to the Orbitz office.

"Russ you can just stay in the car if you want," said Casey as she got out. "This shouldn't take very long."

"Na, I want to come," Rusty replied getting out of the car and following Cappie and Casey into the building. "I can help you carry some of the things."

They took the elevator up and immediately saw Stephanie, Mr. Rockford's assistant, when they got off.

"Casey," she said. "We were wondering where you were this morning."

"Is Mr. Rockford in?" Casey asked ignoring Stephanie's comment.

"Actually he's away in a meeting," said Stephanie. "Is there something I can help you with?"

Casey turned to look at Cappie and sighed.

"I forgot he had a meeting this morning," Casey said.

"Who cares?" said Cappie. "Let's just get your stuff and get the hell out of here."

"What's going on?" asked Stephanie. "Casey, are you quitting?"

"Yes," Casey replied. "Just pass the message along to Mr. Rockford."

Stephanie looked stunned as Casey, Cappie and Rusty all went back to Casey's office to begin packing up her stuff. It didn't take long for Robert to hear movement in Casey's office. He quickly came over and walked inside.

"Casey you're la—," he was caught off guard seeing Rusty and Cappie in the office too. "What is going on here?"

"Robert I quit," said Casey looking at him.

"What the hell? What are you talking about?" he asked staring at Casey.

"I believe she said she quit," said Cappie walking towards Robert.

"Stay out of this," said Robert putting his hand on Cappie's chest. "This is between Casey and I."

"Well pal, the minute you laid a hand on my fiancée is when I became involved," said Cappie sternly. "You can find another woman to get over the death of your wife with. Casey is off limits."

"Ha!" said Robert walking to the other side of the room. "I can't believe you actually believed that story Casey. You really are gullible, certainly live up to your hair color."

"Come on dude," said Cappie. "You don't have to insult her. After everything you put her through, it's the least you could do."

"Casey knows I'm twice the lover you could ever be," Robert sneered as he walked back up to Cappie.

"Yeah, let me know how that Viagra is working out for you," Cappie snapped back with a smile.

Just then Robert swung his right arm at Cappie's head. Cappie fell to the ground as Robert got on top of him and began throwing several punches.

"Robert stop," said Casey as she watched in horror.

Robert swung his arm back for another huge punch when he felt a hand stop him. Rusty came from behind him and pulled him off of Cappie. Before Robert could get his bearings Rusty swung his right arm at Robert's face as hard as he could.

"There," he said as Robert fell to the ground. "That's for hitting my best friend."

Robert shook his head to clear it before standing back up. But Rusty didn't let him. He swung his hand back and gave him another blow to the face.

"And that's for messing with my sister," said Rusty as he backed away from Robert.

"Come on," said Casey helping Cappie up off of the ground. "Let's get the hell out of here."

Rusty walked over to help with Cappie as Casey grabbed the items they had come to get from the office. Cappie put his arm around Rusty and the two of them walked to the door with Casey following them.

"Oh, and one last thing," said Casey turning back and walking over to Robert who was still trying to gather himself on the floor.

Casey went over and stomped her foot right on Robert's crotch. Robert grabbed his crotch as he moaned in pain.

"That'll teach you to never lie to or mess with another girl like you did to me," Casey said proudly as she joined the guys back at the door to head out of the office.

Casey said goodbye to Stephanie as the three of them walked into the elevator. Once in the elevator Casey turned to Cappie.

"Are you OK?" she asked touching his swollen eye.

"Yeah," he said softly. "I just wish I was the one who got to punch that douche bag."

Casey turned to Rusty who was holding his right hand.

"Oh this only hurts a little bit," he said motioning to his hand. "I got all the satisfaction I needed by punching that guy. It felt so good."

"Thanks Russ," said Casey giving him a hug.

The elevator doors opened and the three of them walked out of the Orbitz building, to never return again.

* * *

**_A/N: So YAY Robert is finally gone! I know everyone didn't like him very much.....LoL. But go Rusty!_**

**_Sorry to those of you who felt the whole Robert situation was out of character for Casey. I thought it was appropriate for her to feel like she could handle it on her own at first. But of course she would tell Cappie once she felt things got out of control.....which is what had happened in Cleveland so hence she told Cappie afterwards._**

**_I'm always open to your guys reviews and opinions.....thanks for your thoughts.....especially to those who have been reading and never reviewed before, it's always nice to hear from someone new. _**

**_OK sneak peak for tomorrow.......we find out the other 1/2 of Cappie's surprise AND the two of them start discussing baby names! :0)_**


	41. Broken Angel

The next day Casey played nurse to Cappie. His eye was almost swollen shut and he was in a lot of pain. She was constantly bringing him ice packs to help with the pain and swelling.

"Here's another ice bag," said Casey handing it to Cappie who was lying on the bed.

"Thanks sweetheart," Cappie replied taking it and putting it on his head.

"I can't believe that happened yesterday," said Casey sitting on the edge of the bed next to Cappie.

"Me neither," Cappie replied. "I guess I'm just lucky Rusty was there. Robert probably would have beat up my face a lot more than it already is."

"I'm sorry, I feel really guilty," said Casey looking down towards the ground.

"Don't be sorry," he replied. "What happened is what happened. As far as I'm concerned it's done and over with so we can forget about it."

"You don't have to tell me twice," Casey replied as she began to stand up.

But Cappie grabbed her hand and pulled her back down to sit on the bed.

"So I never got to ask," said Cappie. "How did our little girl like her first plane ride?"

Casey looked at Cappie and smiled.

"She was moving all over the place," she replied. "And as soon as the plane landed she stopped. It must have worn her out."

"Yeah, I guess so," said Cappie, also smiling as he reached over and rubbed Casey's stomach.

"Hard to believe she'll be here in just a few short months," said Casey.

"I know," Cappie replied. "I feel like we still have so much more to do."

"Well hey, the new Jeep is a step in the right direction," said Casey with a smile. "It really is perfect. You did a good job picking it out."

"Well you can actually thank Beaver," Cappie replied. "He's the one who picked it out."

"How did Beaver pick it out?" asked Casey giving Cappie a confused look.

"He came with me to the car dealership," Cappie replied.

"Wait, I thought Beaver moved to Atlanta after graduation," said Casey. "What is he doing here in Chicago?"

"He moved here," Cappie replied.

"I'm so confused," said Casey continuing to stare at Cappie.

"Well, that was the other part of my surprise for you a couple of nights ago."

"Beaver moving to Chicago was the other part of your surprise?" Casey asked disappointed it wasn't anything more exciting.

"Just a part of it," Cappie replied.

Casey looked at him as he began to have a smile plaster across his face.

"Tell me," she whined nudging his arm. "What does Beaver have to do with the surprise?"

"Beaver and I are partners now," Cappie finally said.

Casey had a look of horror come over her face.

"Oh no, not that kind of partners," said Cappie with a laugh noticing Casey's facial expression. "We're business partners."

"Business partners?" Casey asked.

"Yeah, Beaver called me a couple of weeks ago asking if I wanted to partner with him on a new restaurant he is looking to open. He flew up to Chicago a couple days later and we worked out some of the details. We even found a building downtown that is just the right location."

"Do either of you know anything about running a restaurant?" Casey asked with uncertainty.

"Beaver's got a good grasp on the restaurant side of things. After graduation he tried to open something up in Atlanta thinking they had a good market down there. But he couldn't find a business partner down there and locations were few and far between. So he did some research up here and realized the market is much better. He'll handle the food and service part of the operation and I'm going to handle the business side of things."

"This is kind of crazy Cap," said Casey looking at him.

"But it's not crazy," said Cappie reaching for Casey's hand. "This could be exactly what we need. I have a job now. Sure I'm not making any money yet but things are moving along very quickly. We're planning on having our grand opening a few weeks from now, Fourth of July weekend. Please let me show you I can do this."

Cappie looked at Casey with pouty eyes.

"I'm not going to stop you," she said squeezing his hand. "If you think this is something that you can do then I'm just happy that you have a job. I'm here to support you one hundred percent."

"Thank you," Cappie replied smiling at her. "I won't let you down. I promise."

"So where is Beaver staying?" Casey asked.

"He actually got an apartment downtown, not far from the restaurant," Cappie replied.

"And have you two thought about what you're going to name this place?"

"It will be appropriately named 'The Beaver'," Cappie replied.

"So original," said Casey with a chuckle.

Cappie just stared into Casey's eyes for a few seconds.

"There, that's my girl," he said with a smile.

"What do you mean?" Casey asked.

"Case, I haven't heard you laugh in what seems like weeks. I miss that about you," he said.

"I haven't changed," said Casey. "I'm still the same girl you know and love."

"I do love you," said Cappie.

He leaned up and gave Casey a soft kiss on the cheek.

"And I'll always love you," he added.

"I'll always love you too," Casey replied. "And I'm so proud of you for getting a job. It may be a little bit of a gamble but I know you and Beaver can do anything if you set your mind to it."

"Thanks Case," Cappie replied. "That means a lot to me."

Casey smiled as she began to stare off out the window.

"What's that look for?" Cappie asked.

"Oh I was just thinking about our little girl growing up," she said. "If the restaurant goes well I can see her being a waitress there when she's old enough."

"Yeah," Cappie sighed also staring out the window. "And she would bring home the most money in tips because she would be the most beautiful girl in the room."

Casey chuckled again as she turned to look at Cappie.

"You really love her already don't you?" she asked.

"Of course," said Cappie putting his hand on Casey's stomach. "She's already got my heart."

"Mine too," said Casey as she rubbed her stomach.

"Case, everything is going to be alright with the baby," Cappie assured her. "Beaver and I are actually meeting tomorrow to go over health insurance and benefits for the employees. I promise you'll both have the insurance you need. Please don't worry."

"I'm not worrying anymore," said Casey. "Like you said, we have both closed that chapter. I didn't like the person I was becoming. Thanks for helping me find myself again."

"That's why I'm here," said Cappie pulling her down into his arms. "I love you."

"I love you too," Casey replied as she snuggled closer to him so they could take a nap.

* * *

**_A/N: So what do you guys think of Cap teaming up with Beaver?? I think they'll make a good team._**

**_Off to Chapter 42.....oh and it actually is one of my favorite chapters of the story so far.......hope you like it as much as I do!_**


	42. I Can't Wait

I CAN'T WAIT

The next two weeks went by rather quickly for the couple. Casey discussed things with Mr. Rockford who immediately fired Robert once he found out the whole story. He begged Casey to come back to work but Casey declined. It was not where she wanted to be at this point. He assured her that she would always have a job at Orbitz if she ever changed her mind in the future.

Cappie kept busy with the restaurant. He was with Beaver almost every day at the location making sure things were set up and in place. Casey even got into the business a little and helped Beaver with interviews and hiring of the staff.

The restaurant was set to open July 1st, hoping they could take advantage with the Fourth of July holiday. Since the boys were so on top of things there wasn't much to do the day before the grand opening. Cappie had gotten up early that morning to do some last minute orientation with the employees. He had just gotten in the Jeep when his cell phone rang. It was Casey.

"Hey beautiful," he answered.

"Honeeeyyy," Casey whined.

Cappie knew she wanted something every time she whined like that. She started having her weird cravings earlier this week. On Monday night she woke him up at three in the morning telling him that she was going to die if she didn't have some dill pickles and cottage cheese. The combination made Cappie want to vomit. But nonetheless, being the good fiancé he is, he went to the twenty-four hour grocery store and bought her what she wanted. She inhaled it as he fell back asleep.

"What do you need sweetheart?" he said breaking out of his thoughts.

"I'm so hungry," she said. "And I don't like anything that is in the house right now. Do you think you could pick me up some fried chicken?"

"Fried chicken? Case, you know that's not very healthy," he replied.

"But I'll only have one piece, I promise. Plllleeeeaaaaseee."

"Alright, I'll stop by Kentucky Fried Chicken on the way home, do you want anything else?" he asked.

"Ew, no, I don't want it from KFC," she replied. "I want it from Boston Market. Yuummmm."

"Case, Boston Market is like twenty minutes out of my way. It's way up there by the mall."

"Don't you love me and your daughter?" asked Casey trying to make him feel guilty. "All we want is some fried chicken from Boston Market. And mashed potatoes and cornbread. But that's all."

Cappie took a deep breath. There really was no point in arguing with a pregnant woman with these crazy cravings.

"Fine, I'll get you lunch from Boston Market," he replied with a sigh.

"Thank you honey!" Casey said excitedly into the phone. "I'll love you forever!"

"I know babe," Cappie replied. "I'll see you at home in a little bit then."

"OK, bye," said Casey as she hung up the phone.

* * *

Cappie walked into the house about forty minutes later with an armful of food and a bag from the bookstore. Casey ran right up to him and grabbed the food.

"Thank god your home," she said opening the bucket of chicken and taking a bite of one. "I thought the baby was going to start eating my insides we were both so hungry."

"Well hello to you too," said Cappie sarcastically as he joined her at the kitchen table.

"I'm sorry," Casey replied. "I'll be much better once I eat. Promise."

Cappie leaned in and gave her a kiss on the cheek.

"Well when you're done come join me in the living room. I have a little surprise for you," he said as he got up and went to the living room and sat on the couch.

Casey heard what Cappie said but she was too into the food to bug him about the surprise at that point.

Around twenty minutes later Casey made her way to the living room and sat next to Cappie on the couch.

"Now what would you have done if you were working?" said Cappie turning to her. "There's no way you could have gone out to Boston Market to satisfy your craving."

"I don't know," Casey replied. "But it doesn't matter because I have the greatest fiancé in the world and because of him I don't have to work."

Casey leaned into Cappie and began to passionately kiss him.

"OK, hold up," said Cappie pushing her off of him. "I want to talk to you about something before we start any of that."

Casey backed away somewhat disappointed but quickly turned to Cappie to give him her undivided attention.

"I think it's about time we start thinking about the future a little bit," he continued.

Casey gave him a confused look.

"So while I was at the mall to get you your Boston Market I stopped in the bookstore."

Cappie opened the bag he had next to him and took out a book. He handed it to Casey.

"The baby name wizard, a magical method for finding the perfect name for your baby," Casey read the title of the book out loud.

She then looked up at Cappie and smiled.

"You really think we're ready to start thinking about a name?" she asked.

"Of course," Cappie replied. "It's never too early to toss some ideas around."

"Gosh, I don't even know where to start," said Casey flipping through the book. "Do you have any ideas?"

"Well I guess first we should figure out if we want to name her after someone, like a relative, or come up with our own name," Cappie replied.

"I think I want to come up with our own," Casey replied.

"OK, then it's off to the book for some ideas," said Cappie leaning closer to Casey so they could look at the book together.

Casey had opened the book to the names that began with 'M'.

"Maddy, Madeleine, Madelia, Madelina, Madeline," Cappie began to say the names out loud. "Jesus, how on earth do people even choose a name? There's so many of them."

"I know," said Casey continuing to read the names on the page.

"I don't like 'M'," said Cappie grabbing the book from Casey's hands.

He opened the book up to the 'P' names.

"Pam, Pamela, Panchali, Pandora, Pansy, What? Who would name their child Pansy?"

"Now that's not funny to make fun of people's names," said Casey sternly. "There are probably plenty of Pansy's in the world."

Cappie couldn't help but start to laugh.

"OK, I walked into that one," said Casey also laughing.

They both returned to look at the book.

"Alright, my head is starting to spin," said Cappie after a few minutes of looking at the names. "There has got to be some way to narrow this down."

"Growing up I always wanted to name my first boy Trent," said Casey reflecting on the past. "I never really thought of a girl name though."

"Trent?" asked Cappie. "Thank god we're having a girl. That name sounds like some preppy jock."

"It does not," argued Casey. "I think it's cute."

Cappie just rolled his eyes at her and returned to the book.

"I want my kid to have a cool name," he said. "I don't want her to have to settle for a nickname for the rest of her life because her parents gave her a horrible name."

"I agree," Casey replied. "But at the same time I want something unique. I don't want any common names like Jennifer or Karen."

"Yeah," agreed Cappie.

Casey snuggled up to Cappie as the two of them continued to look through the book.

"Case?" Cappie asked after several minutes.

"Yes," replied Casey who was still intently looking at the book.

"The baby," he said hesitantly. "She's going to have my last name. Right?"

Casey sat up and turned to look at him in the eyes.

"Of course," she replied. "And at some point all of us are going to have your last name."

"You know, we never really talked about when we'll get married," said Cappie brushing Casey's hair off of her shoulder.

"I guess with everything that happened with my job and now with you and the restaurant we never really had time to talk about it," Casey replied.

"Well do you have any thoughts as to when you want to get married?" he asked.

"Preferably when I'm not pregnant," said Casey with a laugh. "Can you imagine me in a wedding dress looking like I'm sporting a basketball in my stomach?"

"I think you would look gorgeous whether you were pregnant or not," Cappie replied with a smile.

Casey returned his smile as she snuggled back into Cappie's arms.

"Case, I kind of want all of us to have the same last name before the baby is born," said Cappie.

"Cap, we only have three months until the baby is going to be here," said Casey. "There's no way we can put together a wedding in three months."

"It doesn't have to be anything huge," Cappie replied.

"No, it doesn't have to be huge," said Casey with a little sigh. "I just don't want to have a courthouse wedding. I always dreamed of my wedding growing up and I'm not ready to give up on that dream."

"You don't have to give up on that dream," said Cappie as he rubbed Casey's arm. "I'm sure we can find somewhere to have a small wedding and reception with our closest family and friends."

"It just seems pretty crazy," said Casey.

"But it's not crazy," said Cappie turning Casey to look at him. "Let's do some research and see if we can find a nice place. We could get married at the beginning of September. That gives us two months to plan."

Cappie looked at Casey and could see the uncertainty in her eyes.

"Case, I want nothing more than you to be my wife. Let me make some phone calls and see what I can come up with," said Cappie brushing his hand on her face. "I promise I can still give you a wedding of your dreams. And we can be husband and wife before our little bundle of joy comes into the world."

Cappie rubbed Casey's stomach and smiled.

"Alright," said Casey with a smile. "I'll at least let you look into it."

"Great," said Cappie as he stood up off of the couch. "I'm going to start some research now."

Cappie leaned down and gave Casey a quick kiss before running upstairs to get on the computer. She watched him excitedly skip up the stairs and thought about what had just happened. Could she possibly put together a wedding in two months? Casey eventually shrugged her shoulders and laid back down on the couch. If anyone could make it happen it was Cappie. She opened the baby name book back up and continued to read through it wondering how they were ever going to decide on a name. But she and Cappie were a team now. She was confident they would be able to come up with something eventually.

* * *

**_A/N: Awwww......so cute :0)_**

**_Keep the reviews coming! I love all of you guys!_**

**_Sneek Peek: The restaurant opening is here (and Cappie has a little more up his sleeve than anyone thinks) AND Ashleigh comes to visit!_**


	43. Believe

BELIEVE

The next morning Cappie and Casey were up early getting ready to head into the restaurant for the grand opening. Casey was downstairs making the two of them omelets when Cappie came walking downstairs. He came up from behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist and kissing her neck.

"Good morning honey," he said.

Casey turned around to look at Cappie. She had never seen him look more handsome. He had on a pair of khaki Dockers with a black button down collar shirt with a white undershirt tucked neatly into them.

"Do I look like a restaurant owner?" Cappie asked noticing Casey eyeing his outfit.

"A handsome restaurant owner," Casey replied standing on her tip-toes to kiss Cappie. She also noticed he had extra cologne on today and he smelled so good.

Cappie sat down at the kitchen table gathering some restaurant papers as Casey brought over his omelet.

"What time did you go to bed last night?" Casey asked. "I don't even remember you coming to bed."

"Around midnight I guess," Cappie replied.

"Were you still looking up wedding things?" Casey asked as she sat at the table next to him.

"Yeah, and I think I may have found a couple of options."

"Well let me know if you find out anything definite," said Casey.

"Don't worry, I will," Cappie replied continuing to look at the papers. "Mmm Case, this omelet is so good."

"Thanks babe," Casey replied taking a bite of hers.

The two of them finished breakfast and loaded into Cappie's Jeep. They arrived at the restaurant about thirty minutes later. Casey followed Cappie in as he met Beaver in the back.

"Well this is it Beave," said Cappie. "It's finally our day."

"Sure is buddy," Beaver replied giving Cappie a high five. "And how are mother and baby?" Beaver asked approaching Casey.

"We're doing well," said Casey giving Beaver a hug. "Where is Natalie? Is she coming?"

"Yeah, she'll be here a little later," Beaver replied.

Natalie was Beaver's current girlfriend. She lives in the same apartment complex as him and they met one day walking their dogs. Casey has met her several times and really likes her.

Cappie and Beaver worked on some things in the back of the restaurant while Casey was put in charge of meeting the staff reporting to work. Casey's parents, along with Rusty, Natalie and Jordan came in right before they were ready to open.

"Casey!" exclaimed her mom as she walked up to her.

Casey gave her mom a huge hug, followed by Rusty and her dad.

"Look at you," said her mom rubbing her stomach. "Looks like that baby is just growing right along."

"Yeah, she sure is," Casey replied.

Cappie and Beaver soon came out to the front with some glasses and a bottle of champagne.

"Cappie this place looks great," said Mrs. Cartwright. "I really like what you guys did to it."

"Thanks," Cappie replied giving her a hug.

Everyone mingled briefly as Cappie poured the champagne for everyone. He handed the glasses out and walked over to Casey.

"A sparkling non-alcoholic cider for you my love," he said handing her a special glass.

"Thanks hun," Casey replied taking the glass from him.

"If I could have everyone's attention," said Cappie loudly over the side conversations. " Beaver and I would like to say a few words."

Cappie nodded at Beaver to start his speech.

"I want to start off by thanking everyone for being here," said Beaver who was beginning to become a little choked up. "As all of you know, opening a restaurant has been one of my biggest dreams and I'm still amazed that it has come true. Um, I hope you all stay and enjoy some of the food. We have some amazing staff on hand that I'm sure you'll be pleased with. And, and, and now I'll let Cappie talk."

Beaver grabbed a napkin off of one of the tables to blow his nose and wipe his eyes. Cappie looked at him and smiled. Beaver always got emotional with these kinds of things. Cappie wrapped his arm around Casey as he began his part of the speech.

"I want to first thank one of my best friends, Beaver, for having the dream and the drive to open a restaurant like this. I think the two of us make great business partners and I can't wait to make lots of money with you."

Beaver was able to calm down enough to smile at Cappie's last remark.

"I would also like to thank you guys, my family," continued Cappie as he toasted his glass to Casey's parents and Rusty. "Without your support in everything I don't think we would be here today. I really appreciate it."

Casey's parents smiled at Cappie.

"And last but certainly not least I have to thank my amazing fiancé," said Cappie turning to look at Casey. "I sure gave her some hell in the beginning because I didn't want to get a job. But she stood by me and didn't force me to settle for a job I didn't want to do. There's something about this adventure with Beaver that is different. I wake up and I'm actually excited to come to work. So I thank you for your continued support and patience. And I love you."

Cappie leaned in and gave Casey a soft kiss on the lips.

"So that being said," he said turning back to everyone. "Let's toast to an amazing grand opening and continued success in the future for 'The Beaver' as being one of the best restaurants in town!"

Everyone cheered as they clanked glasses together. They were about to take their first drinks when Cappie stopped them.

"Whoa, I almost forgot," he said loudly to get everyone's attention. "I also have a little announcement."

Everyone looked at Cappie with wide eyes wondering what he was about to say.

"Casey and I have set a wedding date," he said with a smile.

"You did!" exclaimed Mrs. Cartwright.

"We did?" asked Casey in a confused tone.

Cappie just turned to her and smiled.

"Yes, I did some research and made some phone calls yesterday," he said. "Everyone mark your calendars for September fourth because on that day I'm going to marry the love of my life."

Everyone cheered and clanked their glasses for the second time, this time being able to take their drinks.

As everyone picked up their side conversations Cappie pulled Casey closer to him as she wrapped her hands around his neck.

"I should be mad at you for setting our wedding date without me," she said smiling up at him.

"You should," Cappie replied with a smirk. "But you're not. Because I know you're happy and you want to marry me."

"Yeah, that has something to do with it," said Casey a little sarcastically. "So where are we getting married?"

"This great hotel that I found online about forty-five minutes north of Chicago. Are you ready for this?"

Casey nodded her head.

"We are going to have our ceremony on the beach outside of the hotel," he said. "And then they are going to set up a nice room for us afterwards to have a little reception with our guests. And then we get a suite at the hotel to enjoy for the rest of the weekend. I know with it being so close to your due date we can't really go on a honeymoon. So I figured a beach in Chicago would be the next best thing. And the wedding will be Labor Day weekend so we should be able to have all of our close family and friends join us."

Casey smiled as she brushed a piece of Cappie's hair out of his eye.

"You're the best," she said. "I love you."

"I love you too," he replied leaning down and giving her a kiss.

"Alright, break it up," said Rusty jokingly coming up to them. "You need to let some of the people here congratulate you."

Casey and Cappie began to hug Rusty and the rest of the guests.

"I hope you're not busy this weekend," said Mrs. Cartwright giving Casey a hug. "Because we need to go and find you a dress as soon as possible."

"As long as I'm not needed here I'm all yours," replied Casey.

"OK everyone," announced Beaver as he looked at his watch. "It's eleven and we already have people lined up out the door. Why don't we say we get this place opened!?"

"Yay!" everyone cheered as they cleaned up the champagne glasses and the staff took their positions.

"You ready buddy?" asked Cappie as he and Beaver walked to the front door to open it.

"I was born ready," Beaver replied as he opened the door to let the first customers in.

* * *

**_A/N: So the chapters went up a little early today because I have the day off work.....woo hoo! Hopefully I can use this time to get some more writing done._**

**_Off to chapter 44............._**


	44. Optimistic

OPTIMISTIC

The restaurant has been a complete success. It has been two weeks since it's been open and the boys are already making well over their projections. The restaurant also got several raving reviews in newspapers and magazines around town. Beaver even appeared on the local news to do an interview promoting the restaurant.

Casey was so proud of Cappie. He was taking this job seriously and really seemed to enjoy it.

Things were also going well with the baby. She had another three weeks until her next appointment and could tell she was growing by the day. This week she started her third trimester which was scary and exciting at the same time. She was excited that the baby was going to be here soon. But she was nervous because there was still so much more to do. Cappie and her spent many late nights the past week discussing baby names and were still nowhere near coming to a decision on one.

Cappie had called to tell Casey he was going to have to work late tonight. Casey didn't care though. She was excited because Ashleigh was flying into town. They were going to spend all of Saturday doing wedding shopping and errands. She was barely able to control her excitement as she pulled up to the Southwest airline arrivals that evening. She scanned the sidewalk and found Ashleigh standing with her suitcase also looking for her best friend. Casey pulled up and honked the horn on the Jeep. Ashleigh jumped up and down when she noticed it was Casey. She threw her suitcase in the backseat and then got into the front.

"CASEY!" she yelled leaning over and giving her best friend a hug.

"ASHLEIGH!" Casey exclaimed back returning the hug.

"I almost didn't recognize you in this car," said Ashleigh. "Where did this come from?"

"Well Cappie decided that his old Jeep wasn't really child friendly so he turned it in and got this one," Casey replied. "I feel like such a soccer mom driving this thing."

"Wow, very nice," said Ashleigh running her hand along the dashboard.

"So how was your flight?" Casey asked.

"It was good," Ashleigh replied. "It felt like forever though because I was so excited to see you!"

"Yay!" Casey exclaimed in return.

"So look at you," said Ashleigh putting her hand on Casey's stomach. "I can't believe how big you've gotten since graduation."

"I know, I look like a blimp right?" said Casey turning onto the highway.

"Not at all," Ashleigh replied. "You look absolutely glowing."

"Thanks," Casey replied.

As Casey turned the wheel Ashleigh caught a glimpse of her engagement ring.

"OH! I haven't seen your ring yet," she said. "Lemme see, lemme see!"

Casey reached her left hand over to Ashleigh to show her the ring.

"Oh Case, it's gorgeous," Ashleigh continued. "He did a good job."

"Sure did," Casey replied with a smile.

"I can't believe you're planning a wedding in just two months," said Ashleigh. "My wedding is not for another year and I'm already overwhelmed with florists and DJs and wedding planners."

"Well your wedding is different Ash," Casey replied. "You're inviting close to three hundred people. Cappie and I are probably only going to have thirty."

"That's true," Ashleigh replied.

"Which reminds me," said Casey. "I was waiting to ask you this in person."

Casey took a deep breath.

"Will you be my maid of honor and stand up there with me?" she asked

"Aw Case, of course I will. I will be honored to," Ashleigh replied.

"Awesome," said Casey.

"So what kinds of things are we going to do tomorrow?" asked Ashleigh. "As your super maid of honor I am all yours with whatever you need."

Casey smiled.

"Well," she said. "I found my dress last weekend with my mom. It was right off the rack and needs some alterations. So you and I have an appointment at eleven for my first dress fitting and to pick out a bridesmaid dress for you. I figured afterwards we can head up to the venue and meet with the coordinator. She wants to go over some more details. And then I booked us a manicure and pedicure appointment at four."

"Whoa," said Ashleigh. "We sure have a busy day ahead."

"We do," said Casey. "But we are going to have so much fun!"

The girls happily talked about wedding stuff the rest of the way home.

"Wow," said Ashleigh as Casey pulled into the driveway. "This house is beautiful."

"Thanks," Casey replied. "But you'll have to tell that to Cappie. He's the one who picked it out."

"Speaking of Cappie," said Ashleigh. "Where is he?"

"He should be home shortly," Casey replied. "It was his night to be at the restaurant."

"Oh can we go there for dinner tomorrow?" Ashleigh asked. "I've been dying to try it."

"Sure," Casey replied as she pulled into the garage and shut off the car.

The two girls spent the next couple of hours eating pizza and chatting about Ashleigh's job and life in New York. Ashleigh tried her hardest to wait up for Cappie to come home but she faded fast with the traveling she had done today. She headed up to the guest room and went to bed. Casey was reading a book in bed when Cappie finally came home.

"Hi honey," said Casey sitting straighter up in the bed. "How was your night?"

"We were so busy," said Cappie taking off his shirt. "There was like a two hour wait at one point. And the crazy thing is that people were actually willing to wait the two hours."

"Wow, that is crazy," Casey replied. "But that is awesome that things are still going well."

"I couldn't be happier," said Cappie as he threw his pants in the clothes basket. "Sorry I wasn't here to greet Ashleigh."

"Oh not a big deal," Casey replied. "She tried to stay up to see you but she was pretty beat and went to bed. She said she'll see you in the morning."

"Yeah," said Cappie as he climbed into his side of the bed.

Casey closed her book and set it on the nightstand.

"What? No baby name book?" said Cappie with a smile observing the fiction novel Casey was reading.

"Ugh," Casey replied. "I think I've read every single name in that book and not one of them jumps out at me as 'the one'."

Cappie reached his arm out so Casey could snuggle up next to him.

"So while I was running around tonight like a madman I was thinking about our baby name situation," said Cappie as he kissed the top of Casey's head.

"And what were you thinking about?" asked Casey lifting her head up to look at him. "About how we should name her 'no-name' because we're nowhere near a decision?"

Cappie laughed.

"Well I didn't think about naming her that," he replied. "But I did think of something that I think will help us narrow it down a bit as long as you're OK with it."

"And what is that?" asked Casey reaching her hand up to play with Cappie's long hair.

"I was thinking about going with a theme," said Cappie.

"What do you mean by a theme?" Casey asked with a confused look on her face.

"I think our little girl should have a name that starts with a 'C' just like her mom and dad," he said.

Casey instantly got a smile on her face.

"That is actually a really great idea," she said. "I'm surprised I didn't think of it."

"Oh OK Miss know-it-all," said Cappie also smiling. "I just pictured people saying our names as a family and it just seemed to fit: Cappie, Casey and Corina or Cathy or Claudia or Crista or-"

"I get your point," said Casey cutting him off and leaning her head back down on his chest. "So did you come up with anything you liked while thinking about this tonight?"

"Not yet," said Cappie squeezing her tightly. "But we'll find it. And our daughter will have the most beautiful name out of all the girls in the city."

"She's a pretty amazing girl for not even being born yet," said Casey squeezing Cappie back.

"She sure is," Cappie replied as he closed his eyes to go to sleep. He had dreams of baby names to think about.

* * *

**_A/N: So hopefully you guys liked these two chapters.....I missed some of my regular reviewers for my posting yesterday :0(_**

**_Maybe if I get a decent amount written this afternoon I'll post one or two more chapters tonight :0) I'm also easily persuaded by reviews hehe._**

**_Next chapters we get some news from Ashleigh and an unexpected hook-up (gasp!)_**


	45. Need You Now

NEED YOU NOW

"Good morning Cappie," said Ashleigh as Cappie slowly made his way down the stairs.

"Morning," Cappie replied walking over to her and giving her a hug. "It is so nice to see you."

"You too," she replied smiling.

"Can I make you some breakfast honey?" asked Casey from the kitchen.

"No, I'm OK for now," he replied sitting on the couch next to Ashleigh. "Thanks though sweetheart."

"Aw, you guys are already acting like a married couple," said Ashleigh gushing at them.

Casey playfully rolled her eyes at Ashleigh as she sat on the other side of Cappie.

"So Ash, how are things with Fisher?" asked Cappie as he rested his hand on Casey's leg.

"They're, uh, good," Ashleigh replied. "He really likes his job. He's in charge of shooting video for several productions on Broadway. You two should come to New York sometime and we'll go see a show."

"That sounds like fun," Cappie replied. "But we'll have to wait until after Casey junior is born."

"Casey junior?" Ashleigh asked with a laugh.

"Well knowing it's a girl I can't keep calling her Cappie junior," Cappie replied. "And since Case and I have yet to come up with a name Casey junior just seems to be the next best thing."

"We did come to a decision last night though," said Casey smiling at Cappie.

"And what is that?" asked Ashleigh.

"We decided her name is going to go along with our names and start with a 'C'," Casey replied.

"Aw, that's so cute," said Ashleigh.

"Well Ash," said Casey looking at the clock. "We should probably get dressed and head out to the bridal shop."

"OK," Ashleigh replied. "What are your plans for the day Cappie?"

"I'm going with you guys," stated Cappie.

He laughed at Ashleigh's odd expression.

"Don't worry, just kidding," he said.

"Cappie has been trying everything he can to get a peek of my dress," said Casey standing up. "But I refuse to let him see it until I'm walking down the aisle."

She leaned down and kissed Cappie.

"You ladies have fun today," he said. "I'll meet you at the restaurant later tonight."

The two girls quickly dressed and headed out the door to their first stop, the bridal store.

* * *

"I figured we would get my dress fitting out of the way first," said Casey as they entered the store.

The two girls met with the seamstress who took Casey into one of the dressing rooms while Ashleigh sat outside.

"I can't wait to see it Case," exclaimed Ashleigh as the seamstress buttoned the last few buttons.

"OK, you ready?" asked Casey.

"Ready," Ashleigh replied.

The seamstress pulled the curtain back revealing Casey in her dress. Ashleigh gasped.

"Casey, it's absolutely perfect!" she stated as she got up and walked towards Casey.

She had picked out an ivory gown made of mostly chiffon. It was strapless with a sweetheart neckline. The empire waist sat just above her bulging stomach with beading and embroidery detail that carried around to the back of the dress. The loose chiffon helped minimize her pregnancy which is what Casey liked most about the dress. There was also a small sweep train in the back.

"It's the perfect beach wedding dress," said Ashleigh as she walked around Casey to see the entire dress.

"So you like it?" Casey asked

"I love it!" said Ashleigh. "You couldn't have picked a better dress. Cappie is just going drop to his knees when he sees you in this dress."

Casey smiled as she looked in the mirror.

"I just can't believe I'm getting married," said Casey.

The seamstress made some adjustments to the hem of the dress for Casey and set up an appointment to have some more adjustments a couple weeks before the wedding depending how much she grows. The two of them then went into the main showroom to look at bridesmaid dresses for Ashleigh.

"Have you thought about what color you would like me to be in?" Ashleigh asked as she flipped through the racks.

"Well it's the end of the summer so I was thinking something kind of summery like pink or yellow," Casey replied.

"Oh I just love yellow," said Ashleigh as she made her way over to the yellow dresses.

Casey followed her as the two of them picked out a couple of the dresses for Ashleigh to try on.

"OK ready for the first one?" Ashleigh asked from inside the dressing room.

"Ready as I'll ever be," Casey replied.

Ashleigh walked out in a very tight satin dress. There was a sash around the waist that tied into a huge bow on the back.

"So what do you think?" asked Ashleigh spinning around.

"I hate it," Casey stated.

"Oh thank god," Ashleigh replied. "I was willing to tolerate it if you liked it but I think it's time to try on dress number two."

"Yes please, get that hideous thing off," Casey laughed as Ashleigh went back into the dressing room.

A few minutes later Ashleigh walked out in the second dress.

"Well?" she asked spinning around again.

Casey was somewhat speechless.

"Please tell me you love it," said Ashleigh was a smile.

"It's perfect!" said Casey as she walked up to Ashleigh and gave her a hug.

The dress was a canary yellow and made out of chiffon which went nicely with Casey's dress. The dress was tea length with small spaghetti straps. It was made for Ashleigh. She looked amazing in it.

"I'll take it," Ashleigh said to the person assisting them.

After Ashleigh paid for her dress the two girls were off to the venue. They arrived around one and met up with Jessica, the wedding planner.

"Casey it's so good to see you again!" Jessica said giving her a hug.

"You too," Casey replied. "This is my maid of honor Ashleigh."

"Nice to meet you," said Jessica shaking Ashleigh's hand. "I hope you ladies are hungry, I set up a little tasting for you so you can sample the foods."

"Awesome," said Casey following Jessica into the hotel.

Jessica led the two of them into one of the smaller rooms which will hold their reception. There was a table set up in the middle of the room. Casey had to blink her eyes a couple of times to verify what she was seeing. There was Cappie, sitting at the table.

"What are you doing here?" she asked walking up to the table.

Cappie stood up and gave Casey a small kiss on the lips.

"You didn't think I would let you pick the food for our wedding all on your own did you?" he said with a smile.

Casey smiled back as they all sat down at the table. The chef then brought them out samples of chicken, fish and beef for them to try along with several side dishes.

"Mmmmm, my vote is for the chicken marsala," said Casey savoring another bite.

"It is good," said Cappie. "But so is the Atlantic salmon. And since my parents don't eat beef or chicken it would be good to have that for them."

"Well can't you have both?" Ashleigh asked.

"Sure," Jessica replied. "You can choose up to three if you want."

"Well then we're adding the prime rib as the third one," Cappie replied.

"Fine with me," said Casey as she shrugged her shoulders.

They finalized the rest of the menu and Jessica took them out to show them the ceremony site.

"Wow Casey," said Ashleigh as they walked onto the beach. "This is beautiful."

"It is," Casey replied. "I still can't believe you found this place Cap."

"This is pretty gorgeous," said Cappie taking in his surroundings.

Casey wrapped her arms tightly around his waist and kissed his cheek.

"We're going to become husband and wife right here," she said squeezing him tighter.

"We sure are," Cappie replied kissing her forehead.

"Have you two discussed whether you are going to write your own vows or use the traditional wedding vows?" asked Jessica as she approached the couple.

Cappie and Casey looked at each other.

"No, we haven't," said Casey. "What do you think Cap?"

Cappie just shrugged his shoulders.

"You guys should say your own," Ashleigh piped in. "I think it would be romantic."

"Alright, we'll go with our own then," Cappie said to Jessica as she jotted a few notes down in her book.

The four of them walked back to the hotel and finalized plans for seating and decorations in the reception room. Casey tried everything she could to keep Cappie from getting the ice sculpture martini luge but she eventually lost that battle. He claimed an ice luge would be more than appropriate given their first meeting at the Kappa Tau rush party.

"I'll be in contact with you guys if anything else comes up," said Jessica. "But everything seems to be pretty much set. The next time I see you two will probably be the day before the wedding at the rehearsal."

"Great, thanks for all your help Jessica," said Casey shaking her hand.

"Yeah, you've been great," said Cappie also shaking her hand.

Cappie said goodbye to the girls and they were off to the salon. The next two hours were full of pampering for them. They didn't really get to talk a whole lot to each other as the place was pretty crowded. Ashleigh was hoping she could have used this time to talk to Casey about something but her nail tech wouldn't stop talking to her. She was hoping she would be able to talk to Casey at the restaurant instead.

* * *

**_A/N: Nothing much to say.....the next chapter is where we find out Ashleigh's news and the hook-up :0)_**

**_Sooooo.....off to 46 we go!_**


	46. Make It Alright

MAKE IT ALRIGHT

"Wow, look at all the people waiting outside," said Ashleigh as they parked the car and started to walk towards the front door.

"Yeah, Cappie said it's been pretty crazy," Casey replied.

The two of them pushed past several people to meet the hostess Amanda.

"Ms. Cartwright, how are you tonight?" she asked.

"I'm fine," Casey said with a nod. "I don't suppose you have a table ready for us?"

"Of course," she replied getting the menus out. "Beaver had me save the table until you guys got here."

Casey and Ashleigh followed Amanda to a table near the back of the restaurant and the girls sat down.

"Thank you Amanda," said Casey as she left.

"Wow, this menu is amazing," said Ashleigh as she looked it over. "I don't know how I'm going to choose anything."

"Well hello pretty ladies," said Beaver as he sat down at their table.

"Hi Beave," said Ashleigh leaning towards him to give him a hug. "It's so nice to see you."

"You too," Beaver replied.

"I was just telling Casey that there are so many things on the menu I'm not sure what to choose," she said. "You really did an amazing job with this place."

"Thanks," Beaver replied.

"Beaver we're having a problem with the credit card machine," said one of the waitresses approaching their table.

"Excuse me ladies," he said standing up. "Duty calls."

"Wow he sure has grown up," said Ashleigh as Beaver was out of sight.

"Yeah, he's doing really well for himself," Casey replied. "Who knew Cappie and him would make such a good team."

"That's for sure," Ashleigh replied.

Soon their waitress came over and took their order and brought them their drinks.

"I haven't seen Cappie at all," said Ashleigh searching the restaurant.

"Oh I'm sure he's running around here somewhere," Casey replied.

Around twenty minutes later Cappie came walking out with their meals.

"Here is your salad Ashleigh, and a steak for Casey," he said setting the plates in front of them.

"How did you know I got the salad?" asked Ashleigh.

"Please," said Cappie rolling his eyes. "I have come to learn quickly that pregnant woman will eat any kind of meat they can get their hands on. There was no way Casey ordered the salad."

"Hey," said Casey breaking away from her food and realizing Cappie was making fun of her. "How many times do I have to remind you I'm eating for two people here?"

"And that's why I love you," said Cappie as he kissed her and went running to help one of the bus boys.

Cappie and Beaver were able to join the ladies at their table for dessert.

"I can't believe how busy you guys have been tonight," said Ashleigh taking a bite of her cake. "It's amazing you can keep up with all the people."

"Well I can't say enough about our great staff," said Cappie. "Casey really knew how to pick some good ones."

"Hey Ash," said Beaver. "You want me to give you a little tour? I can show you the kitchen and things."

"Sure," Ashleigh replied standing up and following Beaver to the back of the restaurant.

"So did you have a good day?" Cappie asked turning to Casey.

"Yeah, it's been tiring but a lot of fun," Casey replied. "I'll probably be asleep by the time you get home."

"Bummer," said Cappie rolling his bottom lip out. "I was hoping we could tackle that baby name book."

"Maybe another night," said Casey with a sigh. "I'm just beat."

"OK sweetheart," said Cappie standing up. "Have a safe drive home. I've gotta go start counting some money or I won't be home until morning sometime."

"Alright," said Casey standing up and wrapping her arms around Cappie's neck. "I love you."

"I love you too," he replied.

"I'm going to go pull the car around," said Casey. "Just tell Ashleigh to meet me outside."

"Can do," Cappie replied as he walked off.

Casey sat in the car for a few minutes before Ashleigh came walking out of the restaurant looking a little disheveled.

"Uh, what happened to you?" asked Casey as Ashleigh got into the car.

"What do you mean?" asked Ashleigh. "Nothing's wrong."

Ashleigh wouldn't make eye contact with Casey. She knew something was up. Finally putting two and two together Casey gasped.

"Ashleigh Howard!" she exclaimed.

"What?" asked Ashleigh as she finally looked over at her, a grin plastered on her face.

"You just made out with Beaver!"

"No I didn't," said Ashleigh looking away.

"You did too!" exclaimed Casey. "I know when you're lying to me. You totally just made out with Beaver."

Ashleigh didn't respond.

"Come on, I won't tell anybody," Casey whined.

Ashleigh looked at her and rolled her eyes.

"Alright, fine, yes Beaver and I kissed," she mumbled.

"Ashleigh, what is going on?" asked Casey. "What about Fisher?"

Ashleigh took a deep breath.

"I don't really want to talk about it," she replied. "This is supposed to be a no-stress, fun weekend. There is no need to bore you with my problems."

"Ash, you don't bore me," said Casey. "I'm your best friend. Please talk to me."

Ashleigh didn't say anything. Casey wasn't really sure how to get anything out of Ashleigh so she just started the car and began to drive. Once she got on the highway, Ashleigh finally spoke.

"I caught Fisher cheating on me again last week," she finally said with a sigh.

"Oh Ash," said Casey. "Why didn't you call me? Why didn't you tell me?"

"Because I was going to go on and pretend it never happened," said Ashleigh.

Casey turned to her briefly and shot her a confused look.

"I have so much wrapped up in Fisher Case," said Ashleigh. "We have any apartment together, we're planning a wedding together. And giving that all up would just be devastating."

"Yeah but Ash, you shouldn't have to stay in a relationship with someone who treats you like that just because there is money involved," said Casey. "You deserve so much better."

"I know," Ashleigh replied. "And for some reason seeing Beaver tonight made that so much more clear. He's such a sweetheart and wouldn't even hurt a fly if he had to. He made me laugh and smile, which is something Fisher hasn't made me do in months."

"Not to mention he's always had a crush on you," said Casey.

"Too bad I didn't notice it earlier," said Ashleigh with a sigh.

"Why?" asked Casey. "Maybe it wasn't right for you guys then. Maybe the time is right now.'

"I don't think so Case," said Ashleigh. "He's got a girlfriend and I still have Fisher."

"No you don't have Fisher," Casey replied. "I'm not going to let you stay with him Ash. The guy is no good for you."

"I know," said Ashleigh looking out the window. "I guess I'm most upset with myself for even trusting him again and letting it get as far as us getting engaged and living together."

"Don't beat yourself up," said Casey. "It's not your fault. Fisher is the type of guy who knows how to play the field. He'll tell you just what you want to hear to keep you around."

"I just wonder how I let my love life get so messed up," said Ashleigh as she began to cry.

"It doesn't matter how it got here," said Casey handing Ashleigh a tissue. "What matters most is how it changes in the future."

Ashleigh didn't respond. She spent the rest of the car ride quietly crying until Casey pulled the car into the garage. She got out and ran inside, Casey followed her but her newfound waddling gait was no match for Ashleigh's quick long legs. She finally made it up to the guest room to find Ashleigh sitting on the bed. Casey sat down next to her. Ashleigh had taken off her engagement ring and was playing with it in her hands.

"I know how hard this is Ash," said Casey putting her arm around Ashleigh. "But you have to realize that you are doing this for your own good. You deserve better. You don't deserve to be cheated on, no one does."

"I still love him," said Ashleigh softly.

"Of course you still love him," said Casey. "That is something that isn't just going to go away with a blink of an eye. There's a mourning and healing process to everything. But the bright side of things is that you will get over this. Whether it's in two days or two weeks or two months, you're going to get through this. And you have my love and support one hundred percent."

"Thanks Case," said Ashleigh.

Casey went over to the dresser and pulled out an old ring box she had.

"Here," she said handing it to Ashleigh.

Ashleigh just looked at it at first but she knew what she needed to do. She took the box from Casey and opened it. She hesitated for a second but eventually tucked the ring in between the foam holders and shut the box. Casey stood in front of Ashleigh with her arms wide open. Ashleigh stood up and went into Casey's arms, sobbing.

"It's OK, It's OK," said Casey trying to reassure her. "Everything is going to be alright."

After a minute embrace Ashleigh backed away and wiped the tears off of her face.

"I think I just want to be alone right now," she said to Casey. "Nothing against you or anything, I—"

"I understand," interrupted Casey. "But you come get me if you need anything. I don't care if it's four in the morning. I'm here for you Ash."

"Thanks," she replied giving Casey a half smile.

Casey slowly walked out of the guest room shutting the door. She stood outside and took a deep breath. She couldn't believe what Ashleigh was going through. She, herself, really thought Fisher had changed since cheating on Ashleigh with Rebecca the first time. He seemed so in love with Ashleigh, especially going to all of the trouble to ask her to marry him. Casey took a deep breath and headed into her bedroom. She changed into her pajamas and climbed into bed. The busy day and emotional time with Ashleigh finally caught up to her. It took her less than five minutes to fall asleep.

* * *

**_A/N: Woo hoo for Ashleigh and Beaver right??? :0) Do you think it's going to turn into a budding romance??_**

**_Keep the reviews coming, I love hearing what everyone thinks!_**

**_Next chapters have a little more on the Ash/Beaver hook-up and then Casey's first appointment with the doctor in Chicago._**


	47. Lost Without Each Other

LOST WITHOUT EACH OTHER

Casey woke up very peacefully the next morning. She turned over to see Cappie sleeping next to her. He looked so handsome when he slept. She leaned over and gave him a small kiss on the cheek. Cappie moaned slightly as he opened his eyes.

"You can go back to sleep," said Casey. "I just wanted to let you know I was going to get ready and take Ashleigh to the airport."

"I would kind of hold off on that," said Cappie as he put his arms around Casey and pulled her into his chest.

"I think she might already have a ride," Cappie replied with a smile.

"Alright, what do you know that I don't know?" Casey asked glaring at Cappie.

Cappie took a deep breath.

"When I got home last night Ashleigh was on the couch in the living room crying. She thought if she stayed upstairs she would wake you up so she decided to come downstairs. Anyway, we sat on the couch for probably an hour talking about everything. She told me about Fisher. And then she told me what happened with Beaver. Actually I already knew about it. I was the one who caught them in the stock room when I tried to tell her you would be waiting for her outside."

"I can't believe you caught them," said Casey with a smile.

"I told Ashleigh she needed to get rid of Fisher. The guy was never really that good for her from the start," Cappie continued. "She told me all of the crappy stuff he would do to her and I felt so bad for her Case. No woman should ever be cheated on. Ever."

Casey just nodded her head.

"Before I came up to bed she asked me for Beaver's number and I asked her what her plans were for it because if she was just going to use him as a rebound I wasn't going to give it to her. She assured me Beaver wasn't a rebound. She just wanted a friend. So I gave it to her and heard her call him on my way up here. I assumed they talked on the phone for a while because I didn't hear her come up to bed for a while. But when I did I heard Beaver's voice along with hers. So just want to warn you that he may be here this morning."

"Aw, that's sweet that he came over to be with her," said Casey. "I really hope he was able to get her to calm down and make her realize Fisher is not the guy for her."

"Beaver's a good guy," said Cappie. "I think he'll be able to at least make her feel a little bit better."

"You're great for talking with her last night," said Casey. "She told me she wanted to be alone so I went to bed. And I guess all of the excitement yesterday put me out like a light."

"I know," Cappie replied. "You didn't even budge when I kissed you goodnight."

"Well I'm going to get up and head downstairs," said Casey as she sat up on the edge of the bed. "I should probably start some coffee. Because if Ashleigh was up as late as you say she was, she's going to need it."

"Come wake me up when she leaves so I can say goodbye," said Cappie as he turned on his side.

"OK," Casey replied putting on her robe and heading downstairs.

She was surprised to see Ashleigh sitting at the kitchen table sipping on some coffee from McDonalds.

"What are you doing up so early?" Casey asked sitting in a chair next to her.

"Oh nothing, just enjoying the day," Ashleigh replied with a fake grin.

Casey glared at her.

"Cappie told you Beaver was here didn't he?" Ashleigh said with a sigh.

"Yes he did," said Casey. "And I'm really not sure what to make of it."

"There's nothing to make of it," Ashleigh replied. "The two of us were just hanging out as friends. We cuddled a little but we didn't even kiss, I swear."

"Well where is he now?" asked Casey.

"He went back to his place," she Ashleigh. "We went to McDonalds for some breakfast and then he left."

"Did you even go to bed?" Casey asked.

"Yeah, I got a couple of hours of sleep," said Ashleigh taking a sip of her coffee.

"This weekend has turned out to be so strange," said Casey.

"Don't read anything into it Case," said Ashleigh. "Beaver and I are just friends right now. He has a girlfriend and I have Fisher. We both agreed to handle things between each of them before anything happens. Who knows if anything will happen."

Casey could see the smile on Ashleigh's face.

"I think you like him," said Casey smiling back at her.

"Yeah, maybe I do," Ashleigh replied. "I saw a completely different side of him last night. I could still tell the crazy frat guy Beaver was in him because he made me laugh so many times. But at the same time I saw a compassionate Beaver who made me feel better with his arms wrapped around me and reassure me that things were going to be OK."

"He is a good guy," Casey replied. "Who would have thought that KT guys would be our knight and shining armors after all this time?"

"Very true," Ashleigh replied with a chuckle.

"So," said Casey with a little hesitation. "Have you figured out how you're going to handle things with Fisher when you get home?"

"A little bit," Ashleigh replied. "I've gotten as far as sitting down with him and explaining that things aren't going to work out between the two of us with his cheating. And depending on his reaction I either politely hand his ring back to him or I throw it back to him in his face."

Casey laughed.

"As long as you give it back to that creep I don't care how you do it," she replied.

"Well I'm going to start getting packed up and ready to go," said Ashleigh standing up.

"I'm still taking you to the airport right?" asked Casey.

"Yeah, why wouldn't you be?"

"Cappie thought Beaver may take you," Casey replied.

"Tell your fiancé to go back to his karmic synergy ways and stop trying to play match-maker," said Ashleigh as she put her arm around Casey.

"OK, I will."

The two girls walked arm in arm upstairs. Ashleigh walked to the guest room and turned around.

"Hey Case?" she said.

Casey turned around to look at her.

"Thanks so much for being my best friend," said Ashleigh. "I would never have gotten through this if it wasn't for you. I would still be engaged to a guy who cheats on me."

"Aw Ash, you're the best too," said Casey walking over to her and giving her a hug. "I don't know what I would have done if you weren't there for me when I found out I was pregnant. It was my turn to be there for you. And you know you're welcome back here any time. Even if it's just to visit Beaver."

Casey smiled at Ashleigh as she backed away.

"You need to develop some karmic synergy too," she smiled back at Casey as she went into the room.

After saying goodbye to Cappie the girls loaded the car and headed to the airport. Casey pulled into the departures as she felt tears swell up in her eyes.

"I'm really going to miss you Ash," she said taking a deep breath, trying to hold her tears in.

"I'm going to miss you too," Ashleigh replied. "But I'll be back in less than a couple of months for your wedding! And then a month after that when that beautiful baby is born."

"I know," Casey replied solemnly.

"Hey, you have too many exciting things coming up in your life to be sad about me," said Ashleigh leaning over to give her a hug.

"I just wished you lived closer," Casey replied squeezing Ashleigh as hard as she could.

"I'm always just a phone call away though," said Ashleigh backing away from her.

Casey noticed Ashleigh had tears streaming down her face.

"Ha, you cried first," said Casey with a little chuckle as she let her tears fall.

Ashleigh just shook her head and rolled her eyes playfully at Casey.

"I love you!" she said getting out of the car.

"I love you too," said Casey. "And call me when you get home so I know you made it safe."

"I will," Ashleigh replied getting her suitcase out of the backseat.

"And let me know what happens with Fisher too," said Casey.

"I will," Ashleigh replied again. "Bye Case."

"Bye Ash," said Casey softly as Ashleigh shut the door.

She sat there and watched as Ashleigh went into the building. She thought about how lucky she was to have such a great best friend. No one in the world could replace Ashleigh and the amazing friendship the two of them have. She drove off daydreaming to herself about Ashleigh breaking up with Fisher and then dating Beaver and moving to Chicago to be closer to him and her. She knew it was only a dream but maybe if she did let karmic synergy rule, her dreams one day could come true.

* * *

**_A/N: So it looks like a lot of you liked the Ashleigh/Beaver hook-up. I always thought they would be super cute together :0)_**

**_Off to chapter 48................._**


	48. It's Alright

IT'S ALRIGHT

The next two weeks went by quickly. Casey spent a lot of time preparing for the baby. Her and Cappie went out and picked out the crib, changing table and rocking chair for the baby's room. She spent a lot of hours at Babies 'R' Us picking out clothes and other necessities for the baby.

Casey had also talked to Ashleigh a lot the past couple of weeks. Things with Fisher went better than either of them had expected. He understood what he did was wrong and that he wasn't ready to settle down with Ashleigh, or any girl for that mattered. He actually moved out and agreed to let Ashleigh keep the apartment. Casey tried not to pry too much but she did know that Ashleigh and Beaver were still talking regularly which made her happy.

Cappie kept busy with the restaurant. He was there almost every day because business was still booming. He was in the process of training a couple of managers who would be in charge so Beaver and him could take some more time off. It was especially important for Cappie to get them trained because the wedding and the baby were both coming soon. He planned on taking a lot of time off when the baby came so he could help Casey at home and spend time with his daughter.

"Are you ready to go sweetheart," he yelled upstairs to Casey. "We're going to be late if we don't leave soon."

"I'm coming," said Casey grumpily as she walked down the stairs.

"You OK?" asked Cappie.

"I had terrible heartburn last night," said Casey grimacing. "And was up every hour to pee on top of that."

"I'm sorry babe," said Cappie walking up to Casey.

"Well people weren't kidding when they said the third trimester is the worst," she said leaning into him.

"It's OK," said Cappie wrapping his arms around her and rubbing her back. "Let's go to the appointment and when we get home I'll give you a massage to make you feel better."

"Thanks honey," said Casey as she broke away from Cappie giving him a soft kiss on the lips.

The two of them got into the Jeep and drove to the doctor's office. Casey went to the secretary and proudly gave her the insurance card Cappie had gotten through work. She was so much happier knowing the baby's expenses would be covered. She had to wait until they were married to be completely covered too as his spouse but everything would be taken care of by the time the baby arrives. After filling out a few papers she joined Cappie in the waiting room. She noticed how different this waiting room was compared to the one at CRU. Every pregnant woman had her husband or significant other there with her. Casey clasped her hand into Cappie's realizing how lucky she was to have him there too.

"Casey Cartwright," announced the nurse when it was her turn.

As usual the first thing they did was weigh her. Eighteen pounds. No wonder she felt like a blimp. The nurse took her vital signs and as before told them the doctor would be shortly.

"This place is so much different," said Cappie as the nurse left. "Look at all this high-tech equipment."

"Put that down," scolded Casey as Cappie began to pick up one of the instruments.

Cappie obeyed and sat down in a chair next the exam table.

"At least they have plenty of chairs in here," said Cappie with a smirk.

"Cap, are you starting to get nervous?" Casey asked.

"Why? Are you?" he replied turning to Casey.

"I asked you first," said Casey looking into his eyes.

"No, I guess not," said Cappie. "I think I probably will when it comes closer to the time. But we still have two months."

"I'm not sure if I am going to be able to get through these two months," said Casey. "Last night was absolutely unbearable. I think I got a total of two hours of sleep. I don't know if I can keep doing that."

"Sure you can," said Cappie. "When it comes to our daughter you should be willing to do whatever it takes."

"I know," Casey replied. "But what if I'm not a good mother? What if—"

"Hey, hey," said Cappie standing up and putting his finger over Casey's lips. "This is not the time to be thinking thoughts like that. You are going to be an amazing mother. Millions of women have become first time mothers since the beginning of time. Just because you're nervous now doesn't mean that you can't do it."

"I guess you're right," said Casey with a sigh.

Moments later Dr. Snyder entered the room.

"Hello, you must be Casey," she said shaking Casey's hand.

"Nice to meet you doctor," said Casey.

"And I'm Cappie," he said extending his hand to the doctor.

"Nice to meet you," Dr. Snyder replied.

She sat down in the rolling stool and opened up Casey's chart.

"I see you were a patient of Dr. Kline," she said. "And it looks like you are around thirty-one weeks right now."

"Yeah, that's about right," Casey replied.

"How have you been feeling?" the doctor asked.

"Truthfully," said Casey with a deep breath. "I've been feeling horrible. Heartburn and aches and swelling and frequent trips to the bathroom are like my life right now."

"I know," Dr. Snyder replied. "But just know that all of your symptoms are normal. The baby is pressing on your bladder and organs trying to find room in there."

Casey nodded her head.

"OK, I'm going to have you lay back and we'll do an ultrasound first," said Dr. Snyder.

Casey did as the doctor instructed and tensed up as she anticipated the cold gel to be placed on her stomach. But surprisingly it was a little warm.

"Whoa, how come the gel isn't cold?" she asked.

"Oh we just got these new warmers," said Dr. Snyder pointing to one on the counter. "It keeps the gel warm which everyone says feels much better."

"I'll say," Casey replied as Dr. Snyder began to move the ultrasound head around her stomach.

Cappie and Casey stared at the screen as Dr. Snyder took measurements and notes. After she completed the ultrasound she took some measurements of Casey's stomach and felt around the outside of her stomach.

"Well," she said. "Everything looks really good. I think you're right on target for the birth the first week of October. I would like to get a urine sample and set you up with a glucose tolerance test to make sure you don't have gestational diabetes."

"OK," said Casey nodding her head.

"Have you guys looked into any childbirth classes?" the doctor asked.

Cappie and Casey looked at each other confused.

"No," Casey replied.

"Well here's some information," she said handing Casey a brochure. "It's at Evanston Hospital which is where you will have the baby. It's a good class and they also take you for a tour of the facilities so you know what to expect when the time comes."

"When should we take this?" asked Cappie taking the brochure from Casey to look at it.

"I would look into doing it in the next couple of weeks," said the doctor. "There is no telling that the baby won't come early so I encourage couples to do it sooner than later."

"We'll get right on it," said Cappie putting the brochure in his pocket.

"Here is a cup for the urine sample Casey," said Dr. Snyder handing it to her. "Just leave the sample in the restroom and one of the nurses will pick it up. The secretary will have your orders and information when you are done. I want to see you every two weeks until we hit week thirty-five or thirty-six and then we'll switch you to weekly appointments."

"Wow, OK," said Casey trying not to seem too overwhelmed with everything that was going on.

"It's OK Casey," said Dr. Snyder noticing Casey became more uneasy. "Everything is fine with you and the baby. These tests are just precautionary. And I think the childbirth class will help ease some of the nervousness you're feeling."

"I hope so," Casey replied with a sigh.

"You'll be fine," said Dr. Snyder patting her on the shoulder as she walked past her. "Just meet with the secretary when you are done. There is no rush."

As soon as Dr. Snyder exited the room Casey turned to Cappie and began to cry.

"This….is….so….scary," she said through her tears.

"Shhhh," said Cappie as he wrapped his arms around Casey. "You stressing out about this is not good for the baby. You need to try and calm down. We still have plenty of time. We already have most things in place. Please don't be so worried."

"I can't help it," said Casey backing away from Cappie. "The closer we get to the due date the more real this is becoming. I just don't know if I'm ready."

"The doctor said you'll feel better after the class," said Cappie. "So we'll sign up for that soon to see if we can't take away some of your fears."

"How come you're not scared?" Casey asked, tears still streaming down her face.

"Shhh, don't worry about me," said Cappie wiping the tears off of her face. "Go and do the urine sample so we can go home and I can give you that massage I promised."

Casey really didn't respond as she got off of the table and went into the bathroom. Cappie sat down in one of the chairs as he waited for her. The truth was that he was just as scared. He never had any siblings so he didn't know the first thing about holding a baby or changing a diaper. He was actually excited to start the class in hopes of learning a lot of that stuff. It was important though for him to stay strong for Casey. She was going through a really rough point with the pregnancy. He just hoped she would feel better by the time the wedding came around so she could enjoy it as much as he will.

* * *

**_A/N: Exciting things coming up in the next two chapters......they finally decide on a name (but I have to warn you, they will know but the reader may not.....I know, I'm mean sorry! LoL!) and go to childbirthing class.....which is quite a long chapter, I believe the longest to date._**

**_Oh and for those wondering, Evan and Rebecca make a small appearance in the next chapter.....but they'll become more involved as the story progresses._**


	49. Dream Girl

DREAM GIRL

Two weeks later Casey visited Dr. Snyder for the second time. Everything was still going well and on track. They looked into the child birthing classes but the ones right away were all full. They were scheduled to go next week for the four hour class. Cappie was starting to work less and less at the restaurant which Casey was grateful for. The only relief from pregnancy was his back and foot massages. They felt amazing and he was giving her one almost daily at this point.

Cappie and Casey were enjoying a relaxing Saturday night at home when the phone rang.

"Hello?" said Casey answering it.

"Hi Case, it's mom," she said into the phone. "How are you?"

"Pretty sore," Casey replied. "But I'm making it. What's going on with you?"

"Nothing really," her mom replied. "I just was thinking about you and how I haven't seen you in about a week."

"Yeah, I guess I haven't seen you since we went shopping for your outfit for the wedding," said Casey.

"Well I was calling to see if you and Cappie would like to come over here tomorrow," said her mom. "I can have your dad grill some burgers and hotdogs on the grill. Rusty came home for the weekend, I didn't know if you knew that or not."

"I didn't," Casey replied. "It would be really nice to see him though."

"So come on over," she said. "We'd love to have you."

"Hey Cap, it's my mom," said Casey turning to Cappie. "She was wondering if we would want to come over tomorrow for a get together. Rusty's in town."

"Fine with me," Cappie replied. "George is covering the restaurant so I don't have to be there."

"Alright," said Casey returning to her mom on the phone. "We'll be there."

"Great!" her mom replied. "We'll plan on eating around noon."

"Do you need me to bring anything?" Casey asked.

"Just that beautiful baby of yours," replied her mom.

"Well she kinda goes with me wherever I go so that shouldn't be hard," Casey replied with a laugh.

"OK honey, I'm excited to see you tomorrow."

"Yeah, me too," Casey replied. "Have a good night mom."

"You too sweetheart," she said as she hung up the phone.

* * *

Cappie and Casey arrived at Casey's parent's home around noon the next day.

"I think we've been played," said Casey noticing several cars parked outside of the house.

"You've been played?" asked Cappie sarcastically. "I've already had to sit through one baby shower, and now I have to go to a second?"

"Oh you had fun at the last one," Casey replied.

"I guess it wasn't that bad," Cappie replied.

"Come on, let's head on in," said Casey reaching for the car door.

"Can I have a kiss first?" asked Cappie in a pouting voice.

Casey turned to him and planted her lips on his and deepened the kiss. Cappie reached over and rubbed her stomach during the entire kiss.

"I read online the baby can start hearing things now," he said. "So I'm going to make sure she hears a lot of loving kisses between her parents."

"You're too sweet," said Casey as she got out of the car.

The two walked up the driveway and into the backyard where everyone was gathered.

"Surprise!" said Casey's mom running up to them.

"What is all this mom?" said Casey acting as surprised as she could.

"Well I realized that you haven't had your baby shower or bridal shower yet so we're combining the two for one big party."

"Aw, thanks mom," said Casey giving her a hug.

Casey began to observe what guests were present while Mrs. Cartwright gave Cappie a hug. She was surprised to see a very important guest walking their way.

"Mom!" said Cappie as he caught a glance at his mom walking towards them.

He ran up to her and gave her a hug.

"I can't believe you're here!" he said. "Is dad here?"

"Oh he wanted to be," she replied. "But he had some work to finish up in Maine so I'm representing both of us right now."

"I'm so glad you could make it," he said hugging her again.

Casey slowly made her way to the two of them.

"Oh Casey," said Cappie's mom looking like she was fighting tears. "You look absolutely glowing. I can't believe how much the baby has grown."

Cappie's mom went over to Casey and began to rub her stomach.

"Oh my!" she stated pulling her hand away. "I think she just kicked me."

Casey let out a little laugh.

"Don't take it personally," said Casey. "She kicks everybody. Heck, she kicks me all night!"

"Aw," was all April could say as she leaned in and gave Casey a hug.

Cappie went with his mom to get something to drink while Casey continued to scan all of the guests present. She saw several of her aunts, uncles, neighbors and family friends. Seeing everyone together like this made her smile. But she became more than excited when she glanced up at the patio table on the deck. There sat Evan and Rebecca and Ashleigh and Beaver. She immediately went over to them.

"There is the woman of the hour," said Evan standing up as Casey approached them.

"That's me," said Casey giving Evan a hug. "I'm so glad you guys could make it."

"We wouldn't miss this for the world," Rebecca replied, also hugging Casey. "We've missed you guys."

Casey glanced over at Ashleigh and Beaver.

"Ash, when did you get in?" Casey asked.

"Oh last night," Ashleigh said with a slight grin.

Casey wanted to ask Ashleigh where she had stayed last night but deep down she already knew the answer to that question.

"So how are things going with you two?" Casey asked Evan and Rebecca as she sat in a chair next to them.

"Things are going well," Evan replied. "I really like my internship and things are working out well for the two of us since we're not too far from each other."

Casey watched Evan grab Rebecca's hand and squeeze it.

"Won't you starting Harvard soon though?" Casey asked.

"Eh, I ended up turning Harvard down in the end," said Evan softly.

"What?" asked Casey. "Evan that was your dream."

"Was my dream," Evan replied. "But once Rebecca and I were able to work things out I realized that I wanted to stay near her. So I'm going to be going to law school at CRU instead. It's still a great program so I don't think I'm missing out on anything."

"Well I'm glad things are working out well with you two," Casey replied. "Anything new with ZBZ over the summer Bex?"

"No, not really," Rebecca replied. "I've gone to a couple of meetings. They are planning on rush being huge this year."

"Aw, I wish I could come back and help," said Casey. "But that's just before the baby is due and a super pregnant woman wouldn't be a great rush image for all the new girls."

"Maybe in the spring or fall rush next year," Rebecca replied with a little laugh. "You're always welcome back."

"Thanks," Casey replied with a smile.

"Casey!" yelled her mom down in the yard. "We need you down here!"

"I guess that's my cue," said Casey addressing her friends. "I'll catch up with you later."

The shower was everything Casey could have hoped for. Even the men who had come had fun. They played a few games and got a ton of new stuff for the baby and their home. The guests left hugging the couple and telling them they would see them at the wedding in two weeks. Once a majority of the guests had left and things calmed down Casey was able to take Ashleigh inside the house to get the scoop on things with Beaver.

"OK, I have to know," said Casey pulling Ashleigh on the couch next to her. "What's going on with you and Beaver?"

"I don't kiss and tell," said Ashleigh with a smile.

"Oh that's crap," Casey replied rolling her eyes. "Tell me, tell me."

"Well I got in late last night," said Ashleigh. "And he picked me up from the airport and we went to dinner at the restaurant. Then--"

"He took you to his own restaurant for dinner?" interrupted Casey unsure if that was smart of Beaver to do.

"Yeah, but it was fine," Ashleigh replied. "He actually had a table set up in one of the private rooms there and the food is amazing so I really didn't mind."

"OK," said Casey nodding her head.

"After that we walked around the city and eventually grabbed some coffee," continued Ashleigh.

"Did he hold your hand?" interrupted Casey again sounding like a twelve year old girl.

"Yes, he held my hand," Ashleigh replied. "We sat and drank our coffee for a while and then we went back to his apartment. The only downside of everything is that we did pass his ex-girlfriend when we walked in. But she just ignored us and we did the same to her."

"That's good," said Casey.

"And really that was it," said Ashleigh. "We watched some TV, talked a little bit more and then went to bed."

"In the same bed?" asked Casey with a sly smile.

"If you must know, yes, it was the same bed," Ashleigh replied. "But nothing happened so you don't even have to ask that question. All we did was cuddle and talk about the future and things a little bit. That's all."

"So are you two like officially together now?" Casey asked.

Ashleigh paused.

"Um, I'm not really sure," Ashleigh replied. "I guess you could say we're dating but I haven't gotten any indication from him that we're exclusive or anything."

"Well I'll just have to tell him to get on it then," said Casey.

"No Case, don't," said Ashleigh. "I just got out of a serious relationship, an engagement for all that matters. I really just want to take things slow and see what happens. I don't want to force anything."

"Alright," said Casey. "I guess just know that I'm rooting for you two. It would just be awesome to have my best friend and Cappie's best friend together, that's all."

"That would—"

"Hey Case, your mom said she's got something for us," Cappie interrupted Ashleigh peeking his head through the patio door.

"OK," Casey replied. "You coming Ash?"

"Actually I need to get going," she replied standing up off the couch. "My flight leaves in a few hours and Beaver was going to drop me off at the airport."

"OK," Casey replied standing and giving Ashleigh a hug. "Call me in the next couple of days and we'll talk."

"Only two weeks until the wedding!" Ashleigh exclaimed pulling away from Casey.

"Can't wait!" said Casey. "Love you Ash."

"Love you too Case," Ashleigh replied.

Casey walked out onto the patio to find her parents, Rusty and Cappie sitting at the patio table.

"What's going on?" she asked sitting next to Cappie.

"Well," her mom began. "Before you and Cappie got here I told all of the guests that the two of you are having a little trouble picking out a name for the baby."

"Mom, why did you have to go and tell everyone that?" whined Casey.

"Because I thought they could help," her mother replied. "So I had them all write down their favorite girl names that start with a 'C' and compiled this list for you guys."

Cappie took the list from her and began reading the names out loud.

"Catie, Coral, Carly, Callista, Charity, Cynthia, Cate, Cara, Cahlan, Cori, Cleo, Crystal, Colleen, Cayla, Cassandra, Cadence, Cassie and Chloe," said Cappie in one long breath.

The two sat for a moment and reviewed the list again.

"I like most of the names," said Cappie. "But I have to get rid of Cleo. Every time I hear that name I think of Miss Cleo, that crazy psychic lady on TV."

"I agree," said Casey with a giggle.

"So do any of the names jump out at you?" Mr. Cartwright asked.

"Actually," said Casey looking over the list again. "There is one that as soon as I heard Cappie say it kind of made my heart flutter a little."

Cappie turned and quickly looked at Casey.

"I felt the same way with one of the names too," he said smiling at her.

"How crazy would that be if you guys were thinking of the same name?" asked Rusty.

"That would be crazy but I doubt it," Casey replied.

"So which one was it?" Cappie asked her.

"You tell me first," said Casey.

"No, I asked you first," said Cappie.

"Hey, I'm the one carrying the baby here," said Casey. "Therefore I think you should tell me first."

"Alright, let's compromise then," said Cappie with a deep breath. He knew he was never going to win this battle. "Why don't we both point to the name we were thinking on the count of three."

"I can do that," Casey replied.

Cappie set the list on the table between the two of them. He looked up at Casey to make sure she was ready. She nodded to him.

"One, two……three," said Cappie.

Magically, they both pointed to the same name.

"No way!" said Mrs. Cartwright as Cappie and Casey both turned to look at each other.

They both had a combination of surprise and shock on their face.

"Did we seriously just pick a name?" Cappie finally asked with a gulp.

"I, I, I think we did," said Casey almost speechless.

"We have a name!" Cappie yelled as he stood up and pulled Casey out of her chair. "We did it honey!"

"We did, didn't we?" Casey asked, tears beginning to form in her eyes. "I can't believe this."

"Me neither," said Cappie pulling her close to him. "But it's perfect. The most perfect name for the most perfect little girl."

Casey stood on her tip-toes and kissed Cappie as he ran his hands along the sides of her stomach.

"I love you," she said backing away.

"I love you too," he replied kissing her again.

Casey helped her parents clean up things while Rusty and Cappie loaded all of the presents into the Jeep.

"Thanks for everything mom," said Casey giving her a hug. "The shower turned out really amazing. I can't believe how many of our family and friends made it."

"Oh you're welcome sweetheart," Mrs. Cartwright replied.

"Rusty, it was great seeing you bud," said Cappie shaking his hand. "I expect to see you in a couple of weeks at the wedding."

"Wouldn't miss it for the world," Rusty replied.

Cappie and Casey eventually got in the car and began their trip back home. Each of them had a smile from ear to ear on their face. They finally had a name to complete their family.

* * *

**_A/N: OK so I've been dying to post this chapter since I wrote it because I want to know what you guys think! _**

_**Out of this list of names: Catie, Coral, Carly, Callista, Charity, Cynthia, Cate, Cara, Cahlan, Cori, **_Cleo_**, Crystal, Colleen, Cayla, Cassandra, Cadence, Cassie and Chloe**_

**_Which one do you think is the baby's name????? We already know Cleo is out so that's why I took it out of the bold._**

**_I want anyone and everyone's opinion so even if you've never reviewed before just tell me which name you would pick....I think it will be fun to see what everyone thinks :0)_**

**_OK, off to Chapter 50.........._**


	50. Love Somebody to Know

LOVE SOMEBODY TO KNOW

Two days later Cappie picked up Casey at home and the two of them were off to their child birthing class.

"I'm sorry Case," said Cappie as she got into the car. "But if this class is anything like that pregnancy book I read I may have to step out and excuse myself."

"You're not going to leave me there by myself," said Casey hitting him playfully. "We're in this together and I want you there the entire time."

"I know," Cappie replied. "And I'll be there for you. I just hope I don't pass out or anything."

"You'll be fine," said Casey leaning over to give him a kiss.

The two arrived at the hospital and were directed to a conference room where the class was being held. There were five other couples in the class with Cappie and Casey.

"Hello," said Cappie nervously as he sat next to one of the couples.

"Hi," replied the female. "I'm Marcia and this is my husband Brian."

"Nice to meet you," said Cappie shaking their hands. "My name is Cappie and this is my fiancé, soon to be wife, Casey."

"How far along are you?" Marcia asked shaking Casey's hand.

"Thirty-four weeks," Casey replied. "How about you?"

"Thirty-eight," Marcia replied. "Brian and I were a little late in getting set up for the class."

Casey just smiled as the instructor walked into the room.

"Welcome everyone," she said. "My name is Sylvia and I'll be your teacher for the class today."

Sylvia had everyone go around the room and introduce themselves and how far along they were with their pregnancy before beginning the class.

"OK," she said. "We are first going to talk about the start of the birthing process. Of course ladies that means contractions and your water breaking. It's important to remember to stay calm when your water does break. You will have plenty of time to get to the hospital so dads, no speeding."

The people in the room chuckled, knowing full and well that there would be no stopping the dads once that time did come around.

"Once you arrive at the hospital," Sylvia continued. "You will be checked in and given a room. The nurses will get you set up on IV fluids and a fetal heart monitor and then you have a little bit of a waiting game."

Cappie leaned into Casey. "Hey, we're already one up on everyone here," he whispered. "We already experienced the IV fluids and the heartbeat monitor."

Casey just turned to him and smiled.

"Now I'm sure all of you have discussed whether you are getting the epidural or not," continued Sylvia.

Casey looked at Cappie, they hadn't even thought about it.

"It is a choice completely up to you but the first topic we dive into in this class is Lamaze and helping you ladies get through the contractions. So I would like all of you to come over to the open area on the floor here with mothers in the semi-reclined position and the fathers either next to them or behind them."

Everyone in the class did as they were instructed.

"Alright, the first part is the breathing."

"Oh, Oh! Is that the hoo hoo hee, hoo hoo hee you see all the pregnant women do on TV?" Cappie blurted out.

"Why yes, Cappie, it is," Sylvia replied a little stunned with Cappie's enthusiasm.

Cappie smiled, proud that he contributed to the class.

"So let's go ahead and practice some of the breathing techniques. Fathers, it is most important for you to learn and remember these techniques because you're going to be the one coaching mom through the birth. She's probably going to be so overwhelmed with the birth itself that she's going to probably need you to coach her through the contractions."

Sylvia gave each couple a handout of the different breathing techniques.

"Alright," said Cappie turning to Casey. "The first one is called the prolonged breath. You're going to breath in a deep breath and let it out as slow as you can."

Cappie demonstrated what Casey was supposed to do. Casey couldn't help but laugh.

"What?" asked Cappie somewhat annoyed.

"Nothing," Casey replied. "It's just funny to see you so into this."

"I just want to be there for my family," Cappie replied. "I read the book, I know how hard birth can be. I just want to do everything I can to make it better for you."

"Thanks babe," Casey replied as she began the breathing techniques he was teaching her.

After the breathing exercises Sylvia instructed the fathers to bring the physio-balls out of the closet for the mothers.

"Mothers I'm going to have you sit on the balls and dads you can either stand or sit on a chair behind them," said Sylvia.

Cappie pulled his chair up behind Casey.

"OK," said Sylvia once she realized everyone was in place. "There is a physio-ball in each one of the birthing rooms upstairs. I have had a lot of mothers who find it most comfortable to sit on the ball. You also have the option of actually having the birth while sitting on the ball."

"Whoa, hold up," Cappie blurted out. "How in the heck can a woman give birth while sitting on this ball?"

Sylvia laughed at Cappie's remark. Casey looked at the ground in embarrassment.

"Another good question Cappie," she said. "If you choose this option Casey will be leaning back against you so she'll almost be in the semi-reclined position when the baby comes out."

Sylvia continued talking about different positions with the ball when Cappie leaned into Casey.

"Sorry, it's not happening on this stupid ball," he said in a very serious tone.

"Of course not," Casey whispered back. "I don't know who in their right mind would actually do something like that."

Casey could feel Cappie breathe a sigh of relief behind her. She wasn't sure why he was so against the ball but it didn't make a difference to her since she had no interest in it either.

"There is also a whirlpool in each of the rooms upstairs," continued Sylvia after she was done discussing the ball exercises. "Mothers you can use this for relaxation before the birth. And just like the ball you have the option of giving birth in the water if you choose."

Casey turned her head back to look at Cappie. He immediately shook his head no.

"Our child is not having a near drowning experience when she first comes out of the womb," he whispered to her.

Casey couldn't help but laugh. She couldn't believe how old-fashioned Cappie was being when it came to the birth. Even though some of his remarks sounded like a joke, he was completely serious about everything.

After a short break the couples were back in their seats to receive the second half of the class.

"I hope the first part of the class was informative for you guys," said Sylvia. "Our next part goes over some things once the child is born. With a normal, healthy birth mother and baby will stay in the hospital just a couple of days. Dad is allowed to stay with mother at all times if he wishes here at our hospital. Mom and dad will be given special wristbands that will match the one baby will be wearing. These wristbands will give you access to the birthing wing and the baby nursery. We also have guest wristbands for grandparents and other family members but these have limited access to the facilities. Ladies if you choose to breastfeed the nurses will go over this with you and help you through any questions or issues you may have. There are several different breast pumps on the market that can be purchased if you choose to do that also."

"This lady is like talking in a foreign language," said Casey leaning over to Cappie who was diligently taking notes. "How come we haven't discussed a lot of this stuff?"

"Shhh," was all Cappie said trying to listen to what Sylvia was saying.

Sylvia then went around and handed each couple a baby doll.

"Now we are going to go over how to hold the baby and how to change a diaper," she said.

"Hey, do you guys know the sex of your baby?" asked Cappie turning to Marcia and Brian.

"No," Marcia replied.

"Well we're having a girl," said Cappie shyly. "And I was wondering if we could trade dolls since you have a girl and we have a boy."

"Cappie that's silly," said Casey. "It doesn't matter which doll we have."

"It's OK, we don't mind," said Marcia switching dolls with Cappie.

"That's better," Cappie said setting the female doll in front of him and Casey.

The couples spent the next hour learning how to properly wrap the baby in blankets, hold the baby, and change dirty diapers. Both Cappie and Casey found this part the most informative of the class as they were each pretty clueless when it came to caring for the baby. But they each felt a little more confident with the knowledge they had learned in the class. The very end of the class was a tour of the hospital's labor and delivery wing.

"The labor and delivery area is locked so that is why those wristbands are so important," said Sylvia as they entered the wing. "They grant you access in and out of these doors."

The group followed Sylvia into an empty room passing several pregnant women walking the halls along the way.

"This is an example of our birthing room," said Sylvia as they walked through the door. "As you can see we tried to make it look as comfortable and at home as possible. We have a couch that folds out into a bed for the fathers to sleep on and here is the whirlpool I was talking about downstairs. The bathroom is right over here and we also have television with full cable channels."

"Is there a waiting area for our guests?" asked Brian.

"Of course," Sylvia replied. "Let me go ahead and show you those."

The couples followed Sylvia out of the room but Cappie went and sat on the couch.

"Cap, aren't you going to go look at the waiting areas?" Casey asked turning to see him sitting on the couch.

Cappie didn't respond. Casey walked over to the couch and sat next to him.

"I just want everything to be perfect," he finally said.

"What do you mean?" Casey asked.

"I want to remember all of the breathing techniques to coach you through this. I want to know that you have the right amount of pillows and blankets so you can be as comfortable as possible. I want to make sure our daughter is born on a bed and not on some stupid ball."

"Honey everything is going to be fine," Casey replied finding it somewhat humorous that Cappie was the one reassuring her at the doctor's office and here she was trying to reassure him at the hospital. "Everything is going to be perfect because we have each other."

Cappie looked at her and smiled.

"Cap, the only thing I need while giving birth is you," said Casey looking into his eyes. "And, well, maybe the epidural."

Cappie let out a little chuckle.

"I know deep down you know we can do this," she continued. "The best thing to do is just be calm and go with whatever happens."

"I know," said Cappie putting his hand on Casey's stomach. "I'm just afraid I'm not going to be a good enough father. What if I say something wrong? What is I do something wrong?"

"Hey now," Casey replied. "Every parent in the world makes mistakes. That's why they call it being a parent. It's the good parents that learn from their mistakes and don't repeat them. We make a pretty awesome team and I'm counting on you to be my coach and stay strong because lord knows once the pain hits I'm not going to be anywhere liable for my actions."

Cappie laughed again.

"You see," said Casey smiling back at him. "There is nothing to be stressed out about. We need to take it one day at a time. We're getting married next weekend so that is what we should be focusing on right now. We've got another month before our little girl comes into the world."

"You're right," said Cappie wrapping both of his arms around Casey. "And that's why I love you."

"I love you too," Casey replied.

She leaned in and gave Cappie a kiss.

"We should probably go find the group now," said Cappie breaking away from her.

"Yeah, that's probably a good idea," Casey replied as they stood up and walked out of the room.

The two of them went to the waiting rooms but didn't find anyone from the class.

"Excuse me," said Cappie approaching a man in the waiting room. "Do you know where the people on the tour went?"

"They left," he replied. "The lady told them this was their last stop and the class was over."

"Oh, OK, thanks," said Cappie as him and Casey walked to the elevator.

"I'm having a craving honey," said Casey as they got into the elevator.

"Do I dare ask you what the craving is for?" Cappie asked looking over at Casey.

"Mmmmm, a McDonald's cheeseburger with extra, extra pickles," said Casey.

"I can do that," said Cappie surprised her craving wasn't too crazy.

"And beets," she added.

"Beets?" he asked. "I don't even know what area of the grocery store I would find those in."

"Well you can ask somebody then," said Casey as they got out of the elevator.

"Great," Cappie mumbled as they began to walk towards the front door.

"Oh wonderful, it's raining," said Casey as she looked out the front of the building.

"I'll go get—" Cappie began but he was distracted by Marcia sitting in one of the chairs beside the front door bent over.

"Marcia? Are you OK?" Cappie asked running up to her.

"I, I think I'm going into labor," she said through clenched teeth.

"Oh my god, we need to get you to the hospital," said Cappie helping her stand up.

Casey gave him an odd look and shook her head.

"Cap, we are in the hospital," she said.

"Oh, right," he replied. "Well let's get you upstairs then."

"Brian was going to get the car," she said as she walked with Cappie towards the elevators.

"I'll stay here and let him know what's going on," said Casey.

"Thank you," Marcia replied as her and Cappie went into the elevator.

"Alright Marcia," said Cappie. "Let's go over some of those breathing techniques. Deep breath in, long breath out."

Marcia did the breathing right along with Cappie.

"Oh my god, here comes a big contraction," said Marcia as she grabbed Cappie's hand and squeezed as hard as she could.

"OK, OK, deep breaths, deep breaths," was all Cappie could say praying that the elevator would get to the labor and delivery floor already.

The elevator doors finally opened and Cappie set Marcia in a wheelchair he found outside the elevator. He wheeled her to the check-in desk.

"She's in labor," Cappie told the secretary.

"Oh no, oh no," said Marcia feeling another contraction coming on.

She grabbed again for Cappie's hand. Cappie knelt down beside her and began to rub her back.

"You're OK," he said softly. "Just keep breathing. They'll have you in the room and in the bed in no time."

The secretary was finishing up some paperwork when the elevator doors opened and Brian and Casey came over to them.

"Are you OK baby?" Brian asked as he approached Marcia.

"Looks like we got that class in just in time huh?" she said with a little chuckle before another contraction came on.

"Alright," said the secretary. "They're ready to take you back now."

"Thank you guys so much for everything," said Brian as the nurse came to get them.

"No problem," said Cappie. "Good luck with the baby."

"Yeah, you too," Brian replied shaking Cappie's hand.

"Thanks for your coaching Cappie," said Marcia as they began to wheel her off. "You've got a great coach there Casey. You guys will be fine."

Cappie and Casey watched them wheel Marcia into the labor and delivery unit and headed down in the elevator.

"Well that was something I certainly didn't expect tonight," said Casey as they approached the front door.

"No kidding," Cappie replied. "But I'm kind of glad it did though."

"Really?" asked Casey somewhat confused.

"Yeah," said Cappie. "I helped me get a little practice in. And you heard Marcia, she said I would be a good coach."

"I already knew that about you," said Casey hooking arms with him as they walked outside.

"I know you did," Cappie replied with a smile. "But now I know myself."

* * *

**_A/N: OK seriously how is this story on Chapter 50 already?!? LoL.....I never expected it to be this long!_**

**_What did you think of the birthing class? I love Cap, he's such a great guy._**

**_Next chapters: Secret shopping with Cap/Ash/Beave and the wedding rehearsal!_**

**_I'm anxious to hear your baby name guesses!_**


	51. Let Love Rule

LET LOVE RULE

The next week was absolutely crazy for Cappie and Casey. Casey was busy finalizing wedding details while Cappie had some troubles with some of the staff at the restaurant not showing up for shifts. He was able to get everything under control though by hiring some new staff.

Friday afternoon the two of them loaded the Jeep up and drove up to the Illinois Beach Resort for the rehearsal dinner and wedding the next day.

"Welcome to your wedding weekend!" exclaimed Jessica as the two of them walked into the hotel.

"Thanks," said Casey giving her a hug.

"Casey I have you set up in room 312 and Cappie I have you set up in the honeymoon suite in room 708. Obviously Casey will be joining you tomorrow night but you'll be staying apart this evening," she stated.

The couple went up to Casey's room to drop her things off while the bellhop took Cappie's things up to his room. Cappie opened the curtains in the room widely as Casey sat on the bed.

"The view is incredible," Cappie said as he looked out onto the beach and crystal blue water.

"Sure is," Casey replied. "I can't believe this weekend is finally here."

"I know," said Cappie walking over to sit next to her on the bed. "Seems like I've been waiting forever."

Casey leaned her head against Cappie as he put his arm around her.

"I could so take a nap right now," she said with a yawn.

"Well why don't you?" Cappie asked. "No one else is supposed to be here for another couple of hours and the rehearsal isn't until later tonight. You have plenty of time."

"Well what are you going to do?" she asked.

"Don't you worry," said Cappie kissing her cheek. "I can find plenty of things to keep me busy. Now lay down."

Casey obeyed as Cappie covered her with a blanket.

"Either myself or Ashleigh will probably come get you up when she gets here," he said leaning in to kiss her again.

"Love you Cap," she said as he started to walk towards the door.

"Love you too," he replied as he walked out.

* * *

"That was like taking candy from a baby," said Cappie as he approached Beaver and Ashleigh sitting in the lobby.

"How so?" asked Ashleigh.

"I didn't even have to suggest a nap to her," said Cappie. "She's the one who mentioned it so I kissed her goodnight and here I am. We should have a good hour or so before she wakes up."

"OK," said Ashleigh. "I was talking to Jessica and she gave me an address of a local jewelry store for us to check out."

"Sounds perfect," Cappie replied. "Let's go."

The three of them got into the Jeep. Cappie put the address in the GPS and they were off to the jewelry store.

"So do you have any idea what you want to get her?" Beaver asked as they entered the store.

"Something that symbolizes us becoming a family," said Cappie. "That's really all I know."

"How can I help you guys?" asked the jeweler as he approached Cappie.

"Well," said Cappie with a deep breath. "I'm getting married to the love of my life tomorrow. And we're going to be having a baby next month. So I'm kind of looking for something that might represent the three of us coming together as a family. I'm thinking a necklace of some sort."

"OK, I've got a couple of ideas," said the jeweler. "My name is Rich by the way."

"Cappie," he said shaking Rich's hand.

"I'll first show you our journey necklace," said Rich as he pulled out a necklace that had a chain of diamonds dangling from it, each diamond increasing in size as it went down.

"That's pretty," said Cappie.

"This chain of diamonds is supposed to represent the steps you take on your journey together," said Rich as he handed it to Cappie.

Cappie looked over at Ashleigh to see what she thought.

"It's a possibility," was all she said.

"How about the next one?" asked Cappie as he handed that necklace back to Rich.

"OK I've got the Love's Embrace collection," he said pulling out another necklace. "The way this is molded is supposed to represent like a hug to let her know that she'll always be surrounded by the strength of your love."

Cappie took the necklace from Rich and again looked towards Ashleigh.

"That's really cheesy," she said with a laugh.

"No to this one," Cappie said without hesitation handing the necklace back to Rich.

Rich glanced around the store thinking to himself.

"When is the baby going to be born?" he asked.

"First week of October," said Cappie.

"I think I've got exactly what you are looking for then," he said walking over to one of the cases on the other side of the room.

He pulled out a necklace and handed it to Cappie. The entire charm itself was a heart made out of small diamonds. Then in the center of the heart was a dangling string of colored gemstones.

"What you can do," said Rich. "Is get all three of your birthstones in place of the gems so it represents the three of you inside one heart."

"Awwwww, that is so perfect," said Ashleigh standing next to Cappie.

"You think so?" Cappie asked.

Ashleigh nodded her head yes.

"You don't think I'll be jinxing us too much by getting the baby an October birthstone?" asked Cappie. "What if she's born in September?"

"We can always change it out," Rich piped in. "That wouldn't be a problem at all."

"Well I guess the question is," said Cappie. "Can you get the three gemstones I need in this necklace by tomorrow?"

"I can do better than that," said Rich. "I can have it done in an hour."

"But could I pick it up tomorrow?" asked Cappie thinking he probably wasn't going to get as lucky to break away from Casey later in the day.

"Hey Cap I can come back in an hour and pick it up," said Beaver sitting on a chair in the corner of the store.

"Is it OK if he picks it up?" Cappie asked Rich.

"Not a problem," Rich replied.

Cappie followed him over to the register to pay for the necklace and the three of them headed back to the hotel.

"It's been close to an hour," said Ashleigh looking at her watch. "I think I'm going to wake her up so she can at least get some sleep tonight."

"You ladies go ahead and get ready for the rehearsal and do whatever you do," said Cappie. "Beaver and I will be having a drink at the bar."

"Can I have the room key?" Ashleigh asked Cappie.

"Oh yeah," he said taking it out of his pocket. "Here you are."

The two boys headed off to the bar as Ashleigh headed up to Casey's room. She opened the door as quietly as she could and went over to Casey's bed.

"Case?" she said softly rubbing Casey's arm.

Casey took a deep breath and stretched her arms before opening her eyes.

"Ash!" she said sitting up. "When did you get here?"

"Oh just a little bit ago," Ashleigh replied. "Beaver is with Cappie grabbing a beer at the bar."

"Did Beaver pick you up from the airport again?" Casey asked.

"Of course," Ashleigh replied. "It was either that or taking a terribly expensive cab."

"Cappie or I could have come and got you," said Casey.

"I know," Ashleigh replied. "But it's your wedding weekend. You shouldn't have to worry about running me around."

"So any new developments with you and Beaver?" asked Casey with a grin.

"You only have an hour and a half before rehearsal," said Ashleigh ignoring Casey's question. "You need to start getting ready."

"Oh I see you avoiding the question," said Casey as she stood up and walked towards the bathroom. "But I'll get it out of you eventually. You'll see."

Ashleigh watched Casey shut the door to the bathroom and smiled. She really did love her best friend.

* * *

**_A/N: So looks like the majority of the baby name guesses were for Carly and Cassie. Thanks for all who replied, I appreciate it!_**

**_Off to Chapter 52..................._**


	52. Love

LOVE

Two hours later everyone was out on the beach waiting to start the rehearsal.

"OK everyone, can I have your attention please," said Jessica motioning her hands in the air. "I am going to need the bride and her father in the back and groom in minister off to the side."

She first directed where the minister and Cappie were supposed to stand. Then she allowed Beaver and Ashleigh to walk down the aisle and take their places. Then Casey and her dad walked down, giggling the entire way.

"Hey, no giggling on wedding day you two," said Mrs. Cartwright jokingly as they passed her.

Cappie and Casey stood facing the minister as he gave them a quick rundown of what the ceremony was going to entail. Then they marched back down the aisle and the rehearsal was done.

"Well that was easy enough," said Cappie as they joined back up with their family.

"Hopefully it will be that easy tomorrow son," said his dad with a wink.

"I'm sure it will," said Cappie kissing Casey on the cheek.

Jessica directed everyone into the lounge they had set up for the rehearsal dinner. The dinner guests consisted of Cappie's parents, Casey's parents, Ashleigh, Beaver, Rusty and of course the bride and groom. They all happily engaged in conversation as they ate the delicious food. Once the dishes were taken away and the dinner was about to come to an end Mr. Cartwright stood up with his drink in his hand.

"I just wanted to say a few words to the couple," he said clearing his throat. "I first want you to know that I'm extremely proud of both of you. You both have really handled yourselves well when it has come to the baby and planning for the future. I think that everyone at this table would agree that we would be here like this at some point for the two of you. This marriage is not just happening because of the baby. This marriage is happening because the two of you are truly in love and that is something beautiful that you share. Cappie, I am excited to welcome you as my new son into the family. You are the guy I always hoped my little Casey would find. I know that as long as she's with you, I won't have anything to worry about. Here's to a beautiful marriage and happy future."

Everyone held their glasses up and clanked them together for the toast.

"I, um, would like to say a few words too," said Cappie's mother standing up with her glass.

Everyone turned to look at her.

"Tobias and I moved Cappie around a lot when he was younger," she began. "And because of that, he really didn't have many opportunities to make a lot of friends. His father and I were delighted when he chose to go to CRU for college. But at first we weren't so happy he chose to rush a fraternity. But over the past few years we have come to realize that the brothers of Kappa Tau have become the friends and family he never really got to have. I want to thank people like you, Beaver, and you, Rusty, for showing my son what family and friends really have to offer. And of course there is you, Casey. You were all Cappie talked about freshman year when we called to talk to him. I remember the first time he told me he thought he was in love with you. I almost cried thinking about how my little boy was growing up. And even though things didn't work out for you two back then, I'm so glad that they are now. I agree with Mr. Cartwright: I think this wedding was destined to happen sometime in the future. We may be celebrating it a little sooner than planned but there is nothing wrong with that. Cap, I know your father and I weren't very supportive in the beginning when we learned about the pregnancy. But you have really proved us wrong. I now believe, more than ever, that you and Casey are going to be great parents. I'm so excited to welcome two new girls into our family. Congratulations you two, and may the future be full of love and happiness."

Everyone at the table again held up their glasses and tapped them together. After the speeches Jessica walked into the room.

"We have a bonfire set up on the beach for everyone," she said. "So whenever you're ready you guys can head out there."

"Excellent," said Cappie standing up.

Everyone at the rehearsal dinner walked out to the bonfire. A few minutes later Rebecca and Evan joined all of them.

"Hey! Glad you could make it!" said Casey as she went up to them.

"Thanks for inviting us tonight," said Evan. "This place is just beautiful."

"Hey EVANder Holyfield," said Cappie with a smile walking up to Evan.

"Hey douche bag," Evan replied giving Cappie a hug.

Casey took Rebecca near the fire as Evan pulled Cappie aside.

"So you ready for the big plunge tomorrow?" Evan asked looking at Cappie.

"I've never been more ready," said Cappie as he took a drink of his beer. "How are things going with law school?"

"Oh, they're great," Evan replied. "It's been a rough first week but I'm slowly getting the hang of everything."

"That's good," said Cappie looking over towards the fire at Casey and Rebecca talking and laughing.

"I actually wanted to ask you something," said Evan.

"What is that?" Cappie asked returning his gaze to Evan.

"I was wondering," said Evan with a little hesitation. "I was wondering how you asked Casey to marry you."

"Are you thinking about asking Rebecca?" Cappie asked with a smile.

Evan just smiled back, waiting for Cappie to answer his question.

"Well since the baby was where our future was going," Cappie continued. "I asked her when I showed her the baby's room in the house for the first time."

"Very nice," replied Evan.

Cappie just stared at Evan waiting for him to say something else.

"I was thinking it would be romantic to ask her on the beach," Evan finally said.

Cappie stood there for a second before he put two and two together.

"Oh, OH! You want to ask her here?" Cappie asked.

"Well, only if it's OK with you," Evan replied. "I know it's your wedding weekend and all but I just thought it would be nice for it to happen here since all of our friends are going to be here. I know Rebecca would be more excited to tell Ashleigh and Casey in person than over the phone. Plus, Rebecca has been talking about getting engaged a lot lately. And I don't think she's expecting anything this weekend since we're here for you and Casey. It'll completely catch her off guard."

"Whoa dude," said Cappie somewhat in shock. "This is awesome. I'm happy for you."

"So it's OK if I do it here?" Evan asked. "I was going to take her for a walk along the beach once it got a little darker out and ask her then."

"You have my blessing," said Cappie as he gave Evan another hug.

"Alright well if anyone asks I'm going to the bathroom," said Evan. "I have to go and get the ring in our room."

Cappie watched Evan go into the hotel and then made his way over to the fire.

"Where's Evan going?" Casey asked as he approached her.

"Bathroom," Cappie replied trying to keep the straightest face he could.

His parents came walking up to him and Casey.

"We're going to head up to our room," said his dad. "You two don't stay up too late. You have a big day tomorrow."

"We won't," said Cappie giving his parents a hug.

"We'll see you tomorrow," said Casey also giving them a hug.

"I think we're going to head up too," said Mrs. Cartwright as they walked up to the couple.

"OK mom," said Casey.

"I will see you bright and early to get our hair and nails done," said Mrs. Cartwright giving Casey a hug.

"I'll be ready," Casey replied.

The couple watched both of their parents disappear into the hotel and went back to the fire.

"Hey Rusty," said Casey. "Where did Beaver and Ashleigh go?"

"I don't know," Rusty replied. "I haven't seen them for a little while."

"Hmmm….that's strange," Casey replied looking around the beach to see if she could spot them.

"Nice of you to come back and join us," said Rebecca as she saw Evan come out of the hotel.

"Sorry, it was a long bathroom break," he said with a smile. "Where did everybody go?"

"Well our parents went to bed," said Cappie. "And we're really not sure where Beaver and Ashleigh ran off to."

"Oh well since we're waiting for them did you want to go for a walk on the beach?" Evan asked turning to Rebecca.

"I would love to," she said hooking arms with Evan and walking off.

"Well I'm feeling a little left out being that everyone is together with someone," said Rusty. "So I'm going to head up to my room."

"Sorry Jordan couldn't make it until tomorrow Russ," said Casey.

"Not a big deal," Rusty replied. "I've got some reading I want to catch up on anyway."

Rusty went over and hugged Cappie and Casey.

"See you tomorrow," said Casey as he walked off.

Cappie took Casey's hand and led her to sit on a bench near the fire.

"Looks like it's just the two of us," he said.

"Yeah," she sighed.

"What's wrong?" Cappie asked turning to her.

"Just taking everything in," said Casey. "I'm trying not to get nervous."

"There's nothing to be nervous about," Cappie replied. "All we're going to be doing is pledging our love to each other in front of our closest family and friends."

"I know," Casey replied. "I think I'm just nervous because I'm anxious for tomorrow afternoon to get here."

"It will be here before you know it," said Cappie leaning in to kiss her.

Their kiss was broken up by someone next to them clearing their throat.

"Oh hey Ash," said Casey noticing her and Beaver standing there. "Where have you two been?"

"We just went for a little walk about the hotel and along the beach," Ashleigh replied. "We did a lot of talking."

Casey looked down and noticed Ashleigh and Beaver were holding hands.

"I hope you did a lot of talking about the two of you," Casey replied with a smile.

Ashleigh looked at Beaver and the two of them smiled at each other.

"Actually, we did," said Beaver turning to Casey and Cappie.

"Beaver and I are official now," said Ashleigh happily. "We're boyfriend and girlfriend."

"Yay!" said Casey as she stood up and hugged Ashleigh.

"Congrats man," said Cappie standing and shaking Beaver's hand.

"So are you moving to Chicago?" Casey asked Ashleigh raising her eyebrow.

Ashleigh laughed.

"No," she replied. "We're going to try the long distance thing first and see how that goes. I've got a good job in New York. But I guess you never know what may happen in the future. You could see me in Chicago soon. Who knows."

"CASEY! ASHLEIGH!" they heard Rebecca yelling as she was running towards them.

"What? What's going on?" Ashleigh asked as Rebecca finally reached them, gasping for air.

Once she was able to catch her breath she put her left hand between the two girls.

"Evan and I are getting married!" she exclaimed.

All three girls began to scream and jump up and down.

"Oh my god, I'm so happy for you Bex!" said Ashleigh once they calmed down.

"He caught me completely off guard," said Rebecca staring at Evan who strolled up to the group casually.

"That's the best way for it to happen," said Casey giving Rebecca a hug.

"Congrats Ev," said Cappie giving him a hug.

"Thanks man," Evan replied.

Rebecca excitedly told about the engagement as the six of them sat around the bonfire.

"This is so awesome," said Cappie as Rebecca finished. "Having our best friends all coupled up here to support us on our special day."

"Yeah, you guys are really amazing," added Casey. "And we're just as happy to be there along your journeys as you have been with ours."

"Amen to that," said Beaver lifting his beer in the air.

"Well," said Casey with a yawn. "I think it's about time I head up to bed. I've got a big day tomorrow."

"I'll walk you to your room," said Cappie standing up. "Are you guys going to stay down here?"

"Yeah, we were going to stay for a while and enjoy the fire," said Beaver putting his arm around Ashleigh.

"OK, I'll be back to join you then," said Cappie as he began to walk with Casey towards the hotel.

The two of them were silent until they reached Casey's room.

"This is it," said Cappie as he turned to Casey and grabbed her waist. "The next time I see you we'll be almost husband and wife."

Casey's heart fluttered a little when Cappie mentioned they would be husband and wife.

"I'm going to miss you tonight," said Casey as she leaned against Cappie. "It's going to be so lonely."

"Rules are rules though," said Cappie kissing her forehead. "You can still call me if you need anything."

"I know," replied Casey backing away from him. "It's just not the same though."

Cappie squeezed her tighter as he placed his lips on hers.

"Goodnight sweetheart," he said kissing her one more time.

"Goodnight, I love you," said Casey as she walked into her room.

"I love you too," Cappie replied. "I'll see you tomorrow."

"I'll be there," Casey smiled at him.

"Me too," Cappie replied as he watched Casey shut the door.

* * *

**_A/N: So what did everyone think of the two new chapters?? I guess the next two don't really need a sneak peek because it's obvious that it's the WEDDING!!_**

**_Thanks again for reading!_**


	53. Blue Sky

BLUE SKY

Casey woke up the next morning with the sun shining brightly in her room. She got out of bed and went out onto the balcony. The weather outside was perfect. There was just a slight breeze and not a cloud in the sky. She looked down at the beach to see the hotel staff setting up for her wedding ceremony. Today was the day. Today she was going to become Mrs. Charles Cappington. Casey smiled at the thought but was shaken out of her thoughts by a knock at the door. She opened the door to find a gentleman with a room service cart.

"I didn't order room service," she said to him politely.

"You didn't," the gentleman replied. "This was ordered by a, uh," he picked a card up from the table. "A Mr. Cappie," he said.

Casey smiled and let the gentleman bring the breakfast table into the room.

"Enjoy miss," he said as he left the room.

Casey pulled a chair up to the table and began to eat the eggs, bacon, hashbrowns and toast Cappie had ordered her. She was about halfway through when there was another knock at the door.

"What now?" she mumbled as she opened the door.

"It's wedding day!" yelled Ashleigh as her and Rebecca pushed into the room.

Casey shut the door and went back to her breakfast as the two girls made themselves comfortable on one of the beds.

"So how was your night?" Casey asked Rebecca as she took a bite of her eggs.

"Amazing," Rebecca replied. "It feels so good to be engaged. I'm so excited."

"Hmmm, Rebecca Chambers," said Ashleigh. "Has a nice ring to it."

"I know doesn't it?!" exclaimed Rebecca.

"And how about your night?" Casey asked turning to Ashleigh.

"What about my night?" Ashleigh smiled.

"Oh come on Ash," said Rebecca playfully punching her arm. "You and Beaver were all over each other after Casey went to bed last night."

"So, isn't that what couples are supposed to do?" she asked.

"Of course," Rebecca replied. "But that stuff usually leads to more action in the bedroom if you know what I mean."

"Alright, enough of this," said Ashleigh trying to change the subject. "We've got to get down to the spa soon. Hair, make-up and nails await!"

Casey and Rebecca looked at each other and rolled their eyes, knowing very well Ashleigh was avoiding the subject.

Casey brushed her teeth, changed into a button down shirt and the three of them headed down to the hotel spa and salon. Cappie's mom and Casey's mom were already in the chairs getting their hair done when the girls arrived.

"Well hello my beautiful daughter," said Mrs. Cartwright. "How are you doing this morning?"

"I'm good," Casey replied. "Cappie ordered me a great room service breakfast so my tummy is nice and full."

"In more ways than one," said Ashleigh as she rubbed Casey's stomach.

"Which one of you lucky ladies is the bride?" asked one of the staff members walking up to the group.

"That would be me," Casey replied raising her hand.

"You need to come with me while everyone else gets their hair and nails done," she said.

Casey looked back at Ashleigh and Rebecca as she followed the lady away. They just shrugged their shoulders, unsure of what was going on. The lady took Casey into a dimly lit room with soft, relaxing music playing in the background.

"I will be giving you a massage," she said. "You can go ahead and undress and get under the blankets face up."

"Wait, I didn't think a massage was part of the package we got," said Casey in a confused tone.

"It was added by your husband-to-be," she replied as she walked out of the door.

The massage was exactly what Casey needed. It gave her a chance to clear her mind and not think about the wedding for just a little bit. She could tell the baby liked it too because she didn't move once while the massage therapist worked on her.

After her massage Casey joined the rest of the girls. The moms were done with their hair and Ashleigh and Rebecca were just finishing up.

"So what was that all about?" Ashleigh asked as Casey sat in the chair next to her.

"Cappie had a massage set up for me," said Casey. "And it was amazing."

"Aw, how sweet," Ashleigh replied.

The staff at the salon busily worked on Casey's hair, nails and make-up so she could catch up with the rest of the party. After stopping in the hotel restaurant for some light snacks they headed back up to Casey's room. The wedding photographer arrived just as Casey was about to put on her dress. The photographer snapped several pictures of Ashleigh and Mrs. Cartwright helping Casey into her dress. Casey looked at herself in the mirror after she was completely dressed.

"You look so beautiful," said Mrs. Cappington coming up from behind her. "My son is one lucky man."

"And I'm one lucky girl," said Casey as tears began to form in her eyes.

"No, no," said Ashleigh running up to Casey. "No crying. You're going to ruin your make-up."

Ashleigh took a tissue and blotted the corners of Casey's eyes.

"Sorry Ash," said Casey. "But just seeing myself all done up and in the dress kind of hit me. I'm getting married."

"Yes you are," Ashleigh replied almost crying herself.

"OK Casey, we have a half an hour until the ceremony," said her mom walking up to her. "Mrs. Cappington and I are going to head down to the site so we are there when guests arrive."

"OK mom," Casey replied.

"You look gorgeous Case," said her mom. "I can't wait to see you and your father walking down that aisle."

Mrs. Cartwright began to cry.

"Stop mom, you're making me cry," said Casey with a little laugh.

"I love you sweetheart," said her mom giving her a hug.

"I love you too mom," Casey replied.

The mothers left the room leaving Ashleigh and Rebecca there with Casey.

"I guess I should give you your last surprise before the ceremony now," said Ashleigh going over to her bag.

She pulled out the jewelry box neatly wrapped in silver paper and gave it to Casey.

"It's from Cappie," said Ashleigh softly.

Casey sat on the edge of the bed as she opened the card first.

_Just a little something to let you know that I'll be thinking of you and our daughter forever and always. I love you Case. Can't wait to see you walk down that aisle.  
Love, Cappie_

"Oh man, this is going to make me cry more," said Casey reaching for a tissue.

Ashleigh and Rebecca did the same as tears began to form in their eyes also.

Casey opened the box and took the necklace out. She studied it carefully. Ashleigh watched Casey's face light up as she realized the meaning behind the necklace.

"The gems," she said trying to fight back the tears. "They are our birthstones."

"Yup," said Ashleigh. "And the jeweler said that if for some reason the baby comes early and an August birthstone was needed they would be able to change it without a problem."

"How did you know about this?" asked Casey looking up at her.

"Beaver and I picked it out with Cappie yesterday while you took a nap," said Ashleigh.

"You little liar," said Casey with a smile.

"So do you like it?" Rebecca asked.

"I love it," said Casey. "It's beautiful. Would one of you put it on me?"

"Of course," said Ashleigh as she took the necklace from Casey and put it around her neck.

Casey looked at herself in the mirror and smiled.

"It's perfect," she said running her hands along the necklace.

Moments later there was a knock at the door. Casey opened it to find Jessica standing there.

"It's time to head downstairs," she said.

* * *

**_A/N: It's wedding time! The next chapter is the longest in the story so far. Hope you like it!_**


	54. All I Have to Give

ALL I HAVE TO GIVE

Cappie spent the entire morning playing golf with the boys. It was not only relaxing but helped him take his mind off of the wedding. Not that he didn't want to think about it. It was just that the more he thought about it, the more nervous he got. It felt good to have his family and best friends by his side. Calvin, Dale and Heath were able to join him for the golf game along with Rusty, Evan, Beaver, Mr. Cartwright and his father. The game took a while since there was so many of them but it didn't matter. The conversation was never dull and they had plenty of laughs to go around.

The eight of them had lunch at the restaurant at the golf course and then headed back to the hotel. Everyone dispersed and went to get ready for the wedding. Cappie went into his room to find a box with a note sitting on the bed. He picked up the card to read it.

_I can't wait to become your wife. I'm going to treasure this day forever. Hope you like your gift. I love you.  
Love, Casey_

Cappie slowly unwrapped the box and opened it. He smiled as he looked at the brand new watch. He had told Casey a while back that he was due for a new watch. He took the watch out of the box. It was silver watch with a blue backdrop behind the clock. Cappie then realized there was an inscription on the back of it: _Time has no meaning when you're in love –Casey_. Cappie smiled bigger as he put the watch on his wrist. It was a perfect fit. He looked at the time and realized he needed to get ready. Quickly he changed into his wedding outfit. Since it was a beach wedding they decided a suit or a tux would be a little too much. So he opted for a pair of khaki pants with a loose button down white short sleeved shirt. After getting dressed he brushed his hair and looked in the mirror. He did look pretty handsome. Cappie was slipping on his sandals when there was a knock at the door.

"Dad," he said opening the door. "What are you doing here?"

"I wanted to talk to you before the wedding son," he said walking into the room. "A little fatherly advice."

"OK," Cappie replied sitting on the bed next to his dad.

"I proud of you son," Mr. Cappington began. "You have really become a great man inside and out. I know I don't have to sit here and tell you how you should and shouldn't treat Casey because I know you already know that. You have yourself one hell of a gal and I know that you're not going to do anything to mess that up. But that being said, marriage does have some work involved. If a problem arises, make sure you use long discussions and compromises to help fix it instead of yelling and harmful words. Make sure you kiss her goodnight every night because you never know when it will be either of your last. And you can never say 'I love you' enough. Even after years and years of marriage those three words will always mean something in both of your hearts. I guess that's about all I have to say for now. Stay tuned for my baby talk in about a month."

Cappie smiled as he gave his dad a hug.

"Dad," said Cappie backing away. "I know in the past we really have never been very close. But I just wanted to tell you that I'm very grateful for the relationship we have now. I know the baby news was a surprise and something you and mom weren't too happy with to begin with. But looking back on it now, I think the baby has made our family so much stronger. I've seen you more these past few months than I've seen you in years. Thanks for the advice. I'll keep it with me for the rest of my life."

"That's my boy," said Mr. Cappington giving Cappie another hug. "And for the record," he said pulling away. "I agree with you. Your little miracle has made this family much stronger. She's not even born yet and is making a difference. She'll always have a special place in grandpa's heart."

Cappie smiled as he stood up off of the bed.

"Well," he said looking at his watch again. "It's time for us to head down there. Time for me to start the rest of my life."

"And a great one it's going to be," his dad replied putting his arm around Cappie as they walked out the door.

Cappie met Jessica downstairs minutes later.

"OK there is our groom," she said walking up to him. "I'm going to go get your bride in just a few seconds. You should wait over there with the minister and dad, you can take your seat."

Jessica rushed off as Mr. Cappington turned to his son.

"Go get 'em," he said as he patted Cappie on the back and walked down the beach towards his seat.

Cappie looked out at the crowd as he approached the minister. There were about thirty guests which he felt was a perfect number for the wedding.

"Time for us to head down the aisle," said the minister turning to Cappie.

Cappie took a deep breath and adjusted his shirt. He was ready to do this. Several of the guests waved to him as he and the minister walked to the altar. The staff did a wonderful job creating the wooden arch and decorating it with white tool and flowers. There was also a harpist set up off to the side that played music for the ceremony. Cappie took one last look at the beautiful water behind him before he turned around to face the guests. His heart began to race a little faster knowing that very soon his bride would be walking down that aisle.

Casey met her father just inside of the hotel lobby.

"Wow, you look beautiful darling," he said giving her a kiss on the cheek.

"Thanks dad," she replied.

"Are you nervous?" he asked as they hooked arms.

"Yes," said Casey taking a deep breath. "But it's a good kind of nervous. I should be fine."

Casey peeked around the corner. She was trying to catch a glimpse of Cappie before she walked down the aisle but unfortunately Beaver and Ashleigh were already making their way down the aisle and blocked any view she could have had of Cappie. Jessica came up to the two of them. Once she heard the harpist change the music to the wedding march she gave them the OK to go. Casey and her father turned the corner and headed down the beach. At first she didn't look up, knowing as soon as she saw Cappie she would lose all control of her emotions. But as they reached the guests she finally looked up and met eyes with Cappie. She saw him reach his hand up and wipe the tears from his eyes and instantly hers began to fall. She held on to her father for dear life feeling weaker as they began to walk towards the altar. Her heart was racing when they reached Cappie. Her father shook Cappie's hand and placed hers inside of his. Cappie squeezed her hand tightly as they took a few steps closer to the minister.

"Ladies and gentleman," he began. "We are gathered here today to witness the union between Mr. Charles 'Cappie' Cappington and Miss Casey Cartwright. Everyone here today has affected the lives of Cappie and Casey. Therefore, today's ceremony not only unites these two individuals, it unites two families and two sets of friends also. Cappie and Casey, a wedding is a celebration of love. Your love has brought you to this moment. Your love will support you through the years of your marriage. True love is not the result of a chance encounter. It is rather a continual decision you make to see the best in each other, to support one another, to hold your relationship as a sacred trust, and as a priority in your lives."

During the minister's entire speech Cappie and Casey did not take their eyes off of each other. They grasped their hands tightly together, never wanting to let go. The sounds of the waves behind them, the occasional click of the photographer's camera and the sniffles from the women in the audience were all mixed in with the minister's words. It was a perfect moment. They had never been so in love with each other.

"And now Cappie and Casey have chosen to state their own vows," continued the minister. "These vows you are about to exchange serve as a public declaration of the intention of your love and commitment to each other. Cappie, you may go first."

Cappie took a couple of deep breaths and cleared his throat.

"I just want to start off by saying that you look absolutely stunning," said Cappie. "I had my vows all memorized in my head but as soon as I saw you walk down the aisle I became completely speechless."

A few people in the audience chuckled. Beaver tapped Cappie on the shoulder.

"You were going to tell her how much you love her, what she means to you, all that mushy stuff," he said with a smile.

"Thanks Beave," said Cappie returning his gaze back to Casey.

He cleared his throat one more time.

"Casey," he began. "I take you as my wife from this day forward. I vow to be there for you through all circumstances. I will throw you a party when you're happy. I'll bring you chicken soup when you're sick. I'll be a shoulder for you to cry on when you're sad. And I'll even run out at three in the morning to get you cottage cheese and pickles if and when you get pregnant again."

Casey laughed along with the audience, easing her nervousness just a little.

"I promise to encourage and support you through all of life's obstacles," Cappie continued. "I will always remain faithful to you and promise to never hurt you."

Cappie had to stop and take a deep breath as he was starting to become emotional.

"I not only vow these things to you Casey," he said as tears began to fall from his eyes. "But I also vow these things to our daughter. I am going to be there for her as long as I'm alive. I promise to give her the best advice I can and help her through anything life may throw at her. I promise to put my family above anything else. I will protect you two, I will keep you safe always. You two girls are everything to me. I love you."

As Cappie finished his speech he wanted so bad to reach down and kiss Casey. It was like his lips were magnetically attracted to hers. But he held back knowing that he couldn't kiss her until they were pronounced husband and wife.

"And now Casey you may begin," the minister said.

Casey wiped a few more tears off of her face before she took Cappie's hands back into hers.

"I feel like you stole all of my words from me," she said jokingly.

The audience laughed along with Cappie. It helped Casey calm down a little bit.

"Cap, I love you," was all Casey could get out before she began crying again.

Cappie reached his hand up to wipe the tears off of her face.

"I'm sorry everyone," she said turning to the crowd. "I blame the pregnancy hormones."

The audience laughed again.

"OK, I can do this," said Casey taking a deep breath. "Cap, you complete me in a way that I didn't know was possible. The feeling of safety and content I feel with your arms around me is amazing. You truly are my best friend and from this day forward I promise you these things: I will laugh with you in times of joy and comfort you in times of sorrow. I will share in your dreams, and support you as you strive to achieve your goals. I will listen to you with compassion and understanding and speak to you with encouragement. I will help you when you need it, and step aside when you don't. I will remain faithful to you for better or worse, in times of sickness and health. You are my best friend and I will love and respect you always."

Cappie smiled widely at Casey as she finished. She couldn't have said any more perfect vows.

"May I have the rings please?" asked the minister towards Beaver.

Beaver playfully checked all of his pants pockets with a worried look on his face that he had forgotten the rings. But in an 'ah-ha' moment he reached into the pocket of his shirt and pulled them out. The audience along with Cappie and Casey laughed. They could always rely on Beaver to lighten any kind of mood. He handed the rings to the minister.

"A ring, by its very shape, is a symbol of eternity. It is an unbroken circle which symbolizes everlasting love. It is a visible symbol of your commitment to one another. Therefore, Cappie and Casey, let these rings serve as a reminder of the love that you have pledged here today."

The minister handed Cappie Casey's ring.

"Cappie, please place the ring on Casey's finger and then repeat after me," said the minister.

Cappie then repeated line for line the following vow from the minister, never taking his eyes off of Casey's.

"With this ring, I give you my promise, that from this day forward, you shall not walk alone. May my heart be your shelter, and my arms be your home. May we walk together through all things. You are deeply loved. With this ring, I give you my heart. I have no greater gift to give. I feel so honored to call you my wife."

He placed the ring on her finger and smiled, noticing how sweaty her hands had become.

"Now Casey, please place this ring on Cappie's finger and then repeat after me," said the minister handing Casey the other ring.

Casey recited the same vows to Cappie as she slid the ring on his finger.

"I feel so honored to call you my husband," she finished smiling as she noticed how sweaty his hands had become.

The two of them joined hands again and squeezed tightly, knowing that the ceremony had almost come to an end.

"May the love you feel for one another in this moment never diminish," said the minister. "May your faces always light up when the other one enters the room. May forgiveness, patience and honesty be your shield. And now by the power vested in me by the State of Illinois, but much more importantly, the love I see in your eyes, it is my honor and my delight to now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss your bride."

He certainly didn't have to tell Cappie twice. As soon as the words left the minister's mouth he plunged his lips towards Casey for the most passionate and romantic kiss they had ever shared. He slightly dipped Casey back as he grabbed a hold of her tightly. They backed away and smiled widely at each other.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, it is my privilege to present to you Mr. and Mrs. Charles Cappington," said the minister as they turned to their family and friends.

Everyone stood and cheered as the two of them walked back down the sandy aisle arm and arm. Jessica met them as they reached the end of the aisle.

"Congratulations you two," she said. "Now while everyone gets settled in the reception area you two are free to get some pictures with the photographer or take some time to yourselves."

"Let's go for a walk down the beach," said Casey turning to Cappie.

"Wonderful idea," Cappie replied as the two of them began walking down to the shore.

Once they were farther away from everyone Cappie turned to Casey and wrapped his arms around her waist.

"I love you my wife," he said as he leaned down and kissed her.

"I love you too my husband," she replied kissing him again.

"It feels so good to say and hear that," said Cappie as a shiver went down his spine as Casey called him her husband.

"Cap, I just wanted to thank you for everything," said Casey wrapping her arms a little tighter around him. "Even though this isn't the wedding I necessarily dreamed of as a little girl, this is the wedding of my dreams given the circumstances. You couldn't have picked a better location for this and we have the perfect mixture of the most supportive family and friends as our guests. This is like a dream I never want to wake up from."

"I hear ya," Cappie replied. "That moment was everything I pictured and more. You really left me speechless in this dress. I've never seen a more beautiful bride."

"Thanks Cap," Casey replied leaning against him. "You look incredibly handsome yourself. I couldn't even look at you when I first began to walk down the aisle because I knew I would just lose it."

"I could tell," said Cappie with a laugh.

"Oh and Cap," said Casey turning to look straight into his eyes. "What you said about our daughter was beautiful. I couldn't have put the words better myself. She is going to be so lucky to have a father like you."

Cappie just leaned down again and kissed Casey.

"You're words were pretty magical too," he said as he backed away from her. "And speaking of baby, how is my little girl doing?" Cappie asked bending down to Casey's stomach.

"She was doing cartwheels during the entire ceremony she was so happy," said Casey with a laugh. "I don't think she stopped moving once."

"I told you she seems to like it when her mommy and daddy profess their love to each other," he said standing back up straight.

"You're so right," Casey replied taking Cappie's hand as the two of them walked back towards the hotel.

Jessica met them once again as they arrived.

"Everything is set and everyone is in place ready for you two," she said as she escorted them to the reception room.

Everyone cheered as the doors opened and the couple entered the room. Cappie and Casey took their place at a sweetheart table in the front of the room. The reception itself lasted a few hours and was more of a social gathering and congratulatory party than it was a wedding reception. There were no typical wedding reception events such as the bouquet and garter toss taken place. They used the time to mingle with their closest family and friends and celebrate the union of their family. Every single person in the room was supportive of the two of them and that is what made the night the most perfect.

Around midnight the two of them decided to call it a night after a long and eventful day. They said goodbye to all of their guests and headed up to the honeymoon suite.

"Here," said Cappie handing Casey the room key as they got off of the elevator. "You can unlock the door."

"Why?" asked Casey.

"Because," said Cappie stopping her. "My hands will be full with you."

He smiled as he scooped Casey up into his arms. He had to admit the extra twenty pounds on her made it harder than he expected but he was determined to carry his wife over the threshold. They made it to the room and Casey unlocked the door and opened it. Cappie carried her in and set her down on the bed. Cappie slowly climbed over her and kissed her.

"Mmmmm," moaned Casey. "I love you my husband."

Cappie just kissed her harder as she began to take his shirt off. Once his shirt was off Cappie began to fumble around with Casey's dress. After a few minutes he sat up.

"I give up on this thing," he said with a laugh. "Will you just take it off for me?"

Casey giggled as she stood up and directed Cappie to the zipper in the back. One that was undone the dress pretty much fell right off of her and onto the floor. Cappie completely undressed her and led her back down onto the bed. He continued to kiss her neck and breasts softly as she unbuttoned his pants. Cappie helped her take the rest of his clothes off so he could be naked also.

"I'm about to make love to my beautiful wife," Cappie whispered to her. "I love you."

Casey just moaned softly in response to Cappie's words. She had never wanted him more than that night.

The two of them made love several times over the course of the night. It was a little difficult at first finding the right position with Casey's eight month pregnant belly in the way but they managed to make things work. It was important to both of them to be able to make love on their wedding night. There was no better way to seal the marriage.

* * *

**_A/N: So what did everyone think of the wedding? Who was thinking Casey was going to go into labor during the wedding? LoL.....I wasn't going to do two major events in one chapter now :0)_**

**_BUT we have made it to the point I think everyone has been waiting for....THE BABY!! I'm not going to tell you what chapter it's going to happen but it is coming up soon!_**

**_Keep the reviews coming....love to hear what everyone thinks!_**


	55. One Way Ticket

ONE WAY TICKET

Casey woke up the next morning with Cappie's arms wrapped tightly around her. She took a deep breath as she took in the moment. She then looked at Cappie's left hand which was around her waist. Her heart fluttered and a feeling of content overcame her when she noticed the ring on his ring finger. Sure Cappie used to wear rings on his fingers all of the time. But there was something much more special about this ring. It meant that Cappie was hers forever. That the two of them were bonded for the rest of their lives. He was her husband. She never knew how much she would love having a husband, even if he had only been her husband for a short time. Casey began to play with Cappie's hair as she twirled it around her finger. She felt him stir and take a deep breath so she lifted her head up to look at him.

"Good morning husband," she said softly as he opened his eyes.

Cappie smiled and squeezed Casey a little tighter.

"Good morning wife," he replied.

Casey laid back down and began to rub her hand up and down his bare chest.

"How did you sleep?" Cappie asked.

"Wonderful," she replied. "Especially since making love to you tends to wear me out."

"Well then we might as well stay in bed all day," said Cappie with a sly smile as he turned Casey to lie on her back so he could lie on his side and look at her in the eyes.

He leaned down and kissed his wife. The thought of Casey finally being his wife sent shivers down his spine. He thought back to when this all first started. He thought about how he didn't feel like he was good enough for Casey after that faithful night. As he stared into her eyes he wondered to himself why he ever thought that. Deep down he had always been good enough for her. They were perfect for each other.

"Cap, are you OK?" asked Casey noticing Cappie was deep in thought.

"Yeah, I'm fine," he replied caressing the side of her cheek. "I was just thinking about how lucky I am to have you in my life."

Casey smiled and leaned forward to give Cappie a quick kiss on the lips. Cappie then surprised Casey by whipping the covers off of her revealing her naked body.

"Cappie," she whined reaching for the blanket to cover herself back up.

"Hey, hey," he said softly stopping her hand from grabbing the blanket.

Casey relaxed back on the bed as Cappie put his hand on her stomach and rubbed it.

"It's hard to believe we are going to be parents in less than a month," he said to her.

"I know," said Casey putting her hand on her stomach also.

"We're ready though," said Cappie with certainty.

"You think so?" Casey asked.

"Of course," he replied as he leaned down and started to kiss Casey's stomach. "She is going to be so loved."

Cappie slowly moved his kisses to the top of Casey's bump and then he began to kiss around her breasts. Casey let out a soft moan as Cappie finally rested his lips on hers.

"I love you Mrs. Cappington," said Cappie breaking away from her lips.

"I love you too," Casey replied running her hands through Cappie's hair and pulling his lips back to hers.

The newly married couple continued to make love for the rest of the morning. Around one o'clock there was a knock in their door. Cappie slowly rolled out of bed and put his boxers on while Casey covered up with the blanket.

"Hey Mr. Cartwright," said Cappie trying to hide most of his body behind the door.

Mr. Cartwright just smiled knowing very well what his now son-in-law and daughter were doing behind closed doors.

"I just wanted to let you know that a lot of the guests are leaving and see if you wanted to head down and say goodbye to them," said Mr. Cartwright.

"Yes, of course," Cappie replied. "We'll get some clothes on and be right down."

"OK son," said Mr. Cartwright turning around and heading back towards the elevator.

"Mmmmm, what was that all about?" Casey asked pulling Cappie back onto the bed with her and kissing him.

"It was your dad," said Cappie pulling away from her. "There are a lot of people leaving and he wants us to go down and say goodbye."

"You mean I have to get dressed?" Casey whined pulling Cappie closer to her again.

Cappie laughed.

"As much as I hate to say it," he said. "Yes, you have to get dressed."

Cappie kissed her one last time before getting out of the bed and putting a pair of jeans and a t-shirt on. Casey grumbled as she got out of bed also and put some clothes on. The couple went down to the hotel lobby and said goodbye to everyone who was leaving. They then stopped in the restaurant to grab some lunch before returning to their suite.

"Man, my back is killing me," said Casey as they walked in the room and she sat on the bed.

"Too much sex?" asked Cappie with a smile.

"Probably," said Casey with a chuckle. "But I'm willing to be in some pain for that."

Cappie knelt on the bed behind Casey and began to rub her back. She shut her eyes and took a large deep breath as Cappie moved his hands up and down her back, hitting all the right places. After about ten minutes Casey leaned back into Cappie and kissed him on the cheek.

"I think it's naked nap time," she said with a smile.

"No complaints from me," Cappie replied.

They both stood up and undressed quickly. Cappie jumped into the bed first as Casey cuddled next to him. Even though they weren't able to go on an actual honeymoon, the couple of days after their wedding were perfect. They cuddled, they made love, they sat on their balcony staring into the night sky and they took numerous walks on the beach. The only thing that really mattered is that they were together, together forever.

* * *

Two weeks have gone by since their wedding. Casey was now going to Dr. Snyder once a week for her appointments. At the last appointment it was determined that the baby was head down which meant it was in proper position for delivery. Casey was beginning to get pre-labor contractions throughout the day. Luckily the contractions didn't hurt so much. It was more her back and entire rest of her body that hurt. While Cappie went to work at the restaurant Casey spent most of her day in bed until he coaxed her into getting up when he got home. She couldn't believe how unbearable the last few weeks of pregnancy were.

It was Monday September 20th: she had exactly two weeks and one day until her due date. Cappie had left earlier in the morning to head into the restaurant and planned on being home later in the afternoon. Casey was lying in bed trying to get some sleep. She had been up every half hour the night before having to go to the bathroom, which didn't allow her to get much sleep. The doorbell rang. At first Casey considered ignoring it thinking it could be the mailman delivering another package. But when it rang the second time she decided to get out of bed and waddle her way down the stairs.

"Casey!" yelled Ashleigh as soon as Casey answered the door.

"Ash! What are you doing here?" Casey asked giving her a hug.

"I was in town," she said. "And decided to stop over."

"But Ash, it's a Monday," said Casey. "Shouldn't you be at work?"

"Not if I don't have a job," said Ashleigh happily as she sat down at the kitchen table.

Casey grabbed a bag of pretzels as she sat down next to Ashleigh.

"Most people aren't that excited about not having a job," said Casey taking a bite of a pretzel. "Especially someone like you who loved her job to begin with."

"Well some things have changed," said Ashleigh. "I am no longer working at Vogue. I'm now working for Claire's."

"Claire's? Isn't that the store that sells all kinds of accessories like earrings and necklaces?" asked Casey.

"You got it," said Ashleigh. "At Vogue I wasn't doing a whole lot of clothing work, mostly accessories. So when a position for designer at Claire's became available I applied right away. And they hired me right away with the experience I had at Vogue."

"That's awesome Ash," said Casey. "I'm so happy for you."

"Thanks," said Ashleigh with a smile.

"So when do you start?" Casey asked.

"Well I was supposed to start today," said Ashleigh. "But my boss called and said it would probably be better for me to wait until next week as long as it was OK with me. And who doesn't want a week off work right? So I said sure."

"So you came to Chicago to see your bestest friend!" exclaimed Casey.

"Not exactly," said Ashleigh.

"Oh, I'm sorry," said Casey. "You probably really came to see Beaver."

"Not exactly," Ashleigh said again.

"Ash, you're killing me with these 'not exactly' remarks," said Casey. "What is going on?"

"Well," said Ashleigh taking a deep breath. "Beaver and I decided that the long distance thing wasn't going to work out--."

"Oh no, you broke up!" Casey gasped interrupting Ashleigh.

"Will you let me finish?" said Ashleigh.

Casey nodded her head, not saying another word.

"Anyway," continued Ashleigh. "Beaver and I decided that we would rather be near each other than have to deal with a long distance relationship. He really couldn't move to New York since his restaurant is here in Chicago so….."

"YOU'RE MOVING TO CHICAGO!" Casey yelled finishing Ashleigh's sentence.

Ashleigh could only nod her head yes before Casey dove towards her giving her one of the biggest hugs ever.

"Oh my gosh I'm so excited," said Casey sitting back down in her chair. "I can't believe we're going to be in the same city again."

"I know, I can't believe it either," said Ashleigh.

"So where are you staying? Did you get an apartment?" Casey asked.

"Right now I'm staying with Beaver in his guest room," said Ashleigh. "We both agreed that it would probably be too fast to move in together since we've only just started dating. So I'm looking for a place and will move when I find it."

"So you're really into Beaver aren't you?" Casey asked.

"Actually, yeah," Ashleigh replied. "He has treated me so good, better than Travis or Fisher ever did."

"I'm glad Ash," said Casey. "You totally deserve the best."

"So enough about me for a bit," said Ashleigh with a smile. "How are things with you?"

Casey grunted and leaned against the back of the chair.

"The late stages are pregnancy are the worst," she replied. "This past week has been like a living hell."

"Ouch," said Ashleigh. "How about things with Cappie?"

"Oh things with Cap are great," said Casey. "He's done just about everything he can to help me become more comfortable. I don't blame him for wanting to work a few extra hours though just so he doesn't have to deal with me."

"I doubt that," said Ashleigh with a small laugh. "So are you starting to get nervous about going into labor?"

"More anxious than anything," replied Casey. "I'm ready for this baby to be born already."

"Is there anything you still have left to get?" asked Ashleigh. "Since both of the boys are at the restaurant I'm all yours if you want to do some shopping or anything."

"No, I think we've got more than enough stuff," Casey replied. "I've even got my bag packed upstairs to grab for when it's time to head to the hospital."

"Always Miss prepared," said Ashleigh with a smile.

"You know it," Casey replied.

Since there was no shopping to do the girls spent the rest of the afternoon watching TV and talking just like old times. Casey was so excited to have her best friend closer to her. She was also happy Ashleigh had found a good guy like Beaver. After everything Fisher put her through she was surprised Ashleigh would allow herself to fall for Beaver so hard. Making a move and changing jobs was a big decision on her part. But Casey knew Beaver was a great guy and this time Ashleigh was actually making the right decision. She couldn't be happier for her best friend.

* * *

**_A/N: You guys had the sweetest reviews for the wedding. I'm so glad that you liked it! They made my day :0)_**

**_tvluvrr: I tried to pm you instructions on how to post a story but you have them disabled. Basically you have to upload the story first under the docoment manager. Then you click on 'new story' and accept the terms and conditions and then it will take you through how to rate it and put a title on it and all that fun stuff. All of this is under the publish tab by the way. I hope this helps without getting too details. Feel free to pm me if you enable them on your account and I can try to help you further. Thanks!_**

**_Ghostwriter: if is OK to have sex at eight months. I did a lot of research for this story believe it or not....lol.....and tried to get things as right as possible. Even the location of the wedding, city they live in, hospital they are going to have the baby at....they are all places in the Chicago area that I found online._**


	56. Wake Up

WAKE UP

Casey went back to Dr. Snyder on September 23rd and September 30th. Both appointments were routine and everything was still going fine with the baby. Dr. Snyder predicted Casey was right on target with her due date, which would be the middle of next week. She also went ahead and scheduled an appointment for October 7th just in case the baby came later than planned. Casey prayed secretly that the baby wouldn't be in her any longer than she had to be. Being pregnant in the beginning was awful. Being pregnant in the middle was wonderful. Being pregnant at the end was hell. She loved her daughter so much but she wanted nothing more than to not be pregnant anymore.

Cappie woke up the morning of October 1st and turned over to look at Casey.

"Morning sweetheart," he said stroking her hair out of her face.

"Morning," Casey said softly.

"You were up most of the night weren't you?" Cappie asked noticing the bags under her eyes and frustration in her voice.

Casey just shook her head yes.

Cappie was really feeling guilty these past few weeks. Seeing his wife miserable was hard on him. He did just about everything he could to make her feel better.

"I have to go into work for a few hours this afternoon to do some budgeting," he said kissing her cheek.

"I know," she replied barely looking at him.

Cappie gave her another soft kiss before climbing out of bed to go and get dressed. He went downstairs and made some coffee for him and hot tea for Casey. It was one thing he found to help calm her heartburn and cramps down.

He went back up to the bedroom and set the mug on the night stand next to her. Cappie sat on the edge of the bed and began to rub Casey's shoulder.

"Are you sure you're OK this morning?" Cappie asked her. "You don't look so good."

"Yeah, I'm OK," she replied slowly sitting up in the bed. "When I came home from the doctor's office yesterday I cleaned this entire house up and down. I think that really just wore me out physically."

Casey took the mug off of the nightstand and took a small sip.

"Alright," said Cappie brushing his hand on the side of her cheek. "I'm going to try and finish things at the office quickly and be home this afternoon. But you know I have my cell phone on me at all times. Call me if you need anything at all."

"I will hun," said Casey setting the mug back down on the nightstand.

Cappie leaned towards her and kissed her softly on the lips.

"I love you," he said as he backed away.

"I love you too," she replied.

Cappie stood up off of the bed as Casey laid back down on her side to try and go back to sleep. He rubbed her back for a couple more minutes before leaving.

"Bye," he said as he headed downstairs and off to work.

Casey was surprised she actually fell back asleep. It was probably because her body just got to the point where it needed sleep and couldn't stay awake any longer. She woke up about four hours later having to go to the restroom. She thought about going back to bed after she used the bathroom but decided since it was already the middle of the afternoon to head downstairs and warm up the tea Cappie had made her earlier instead. She slowly waddled downstairs and put the mug in the microwave. After she pressed start she began to wash some dishes Cappie left from his breakfast when she felt a sharp pain in her stomach. Casey took some deep breaths and leaned against the counter. This was something much stronger than the pre-labor contractions she was used to. It lasted about thirty seconds and then went away. Casey stood there waiting for something to happen again for a couple of minutes but nothing came. She decided to forget about the dishes and sat at the kitchen table to read the paper instead. About ten minutes later the same pain came back, this one lasting a few seconds longer. After waiting another five minutes she got up to get the tea out of the microwave. Casey was beginning to get scared. Was she going into labor?

Casey decided she should call Cappie and let him know what she was feeling. As she walked over to get the cordless phone off of the kitchen table she felt a gush of warm water run down between her legs. Her water just broke.

"Oh my god," said Casey as she quickly sat in one of the kitchen chairs.

She grabbed for the phone and called Cappie's cell phone. He answered after just one ring.

"Everything OK Case?" he asked.

"No," Casey replied, her voice shaky.

"What's going on?" Cappie asked.

"M-my water just broke," she managed to get out.

"Oh my god," Cappie said into the phone.

"Cap, help me," said Casey.

"I will, I will sweetheart," he said trying to stay as calm as he could. "I'm leaving right now. You just sit tight. I'll be right there."

"Hurry," was all Casey said as she hung up the phone.

After she hung up with Cappie she figured the next thing she should do is call the doctor.

"Dr. Snyder's office," the secretary answered the phone.

"Uh, yeah, this is Casey Cappington, I'm a patient of Dr. Snyder and I think I'm in labor."

"OK Mrs. Cappington, can you tell me what symptoms you are having?" the secretary asked.

"Well, I had two sharp contractions several minutes apart," said Casey. "And then my water just broke."

"Alright, do you have someone to take you to the hospital?" she asked.

"Yeah, my husband is on his way home right now," Casey replied. "I should be there in about a half an hour."

"I will let Dr. Snyder know," said the secretary. "You just stay calm and get to the hospital as soon as you can."

"Certainly, thank you," Casey replied.

"You're welcome and good luck," the secretary said as Casey hung up the phone.

As she hung up the phone Casey could feel another contraction come on. She braced her hand on the table and took several deep breaths to help herself through it. Casey wondered if she should get up and get her bag from upstairs or just stay put and wait until Cappie got home. With all the thoughts spinning in her head and the nervousness that overcame her she felt like crying. She needed to talk to someone, someone to occupy her before Cappie got home. She picked up the phone and dialed the number.

"Hello?"

"Mommy!" Casey yelled into the phone. "Mommy I'm in labor, my water just broke."

"OK honey, calm down," her mother stated. "Have you called Cappie?"

"Yes," Casey replied.

"Have you called the doctor?"

"Yes," Casey replied.

"Do you have your bag?"

"Yes, it's upstairs," Casey replied. "I just wasn't sure if I should go up and get it. I don't want to move."

"I know it's scary honey," said Mrs. Cartwright. "But you can move around as much as you want. It may actually help calm you down."

"OK, just stay on the phone with me while I go," said Casey.

Her mom let out a small laugh.

"Of course," she said. "You know I'm always here for you."

"Mom I'm terrified," said Casey as she walked up the stairs to her bedroom.

Just as she reached the fifth step another contraction came on.

"Oh here is another one," said Casey as she bent over bracing herself on the steps with her free hand.

"Deep breaths Case," said her mom. "Just breathe it out."

Casey obeyed and continued her journey up the stairs after it was over.

"OK, I've got the bag," said Casey getting it out of the closet.

"Now you can go ahead and go back downstairs," her mom replied feeling like she was coaching a five year old Casey again.

"Mom I'm not sure if I can do this," said Casey as she felt another contraction come on as she walked down the steps.

"You can honey, you can do this," said her mother. "Millions and millions of women have done this many years before you and they have survived. You'll be fine."

Casey breathed out another contraction as she sat back down in the kitchen chair.

"Oh I hope Cappie gets here soon," she said between her deep breaths.

"He will," Mrs. Cartwright replied.

"Thanks for talking with me mom," said Casey. "I guess I should probably let you go so you can get to the hospital."

"I'll call your father at work and we'll be up as soon as he gets home OK?"

"OK mom, I love you," said Casey.

"Love you too honey. See you in a little bit."

"Bye," said Casey as she hung up the phone.

Casey felt like she waited hours for Cappie to get home. But it was only about ten minutes later that Cappie came running through the garage door.

"Case?" he called into the house.

"In the kitchen," she said to him.

"Oh Case, I knew I shouldn't have left this morning," he said kneeling in front of her. "I knew something was wrong."

"It's OK, really," Casey replied. "I went upstairs and got my bag so I guess I'm ready to go."

Cappie gave Casey a quick kiss on the lips as he stood up. He picked up her bag and draped it on his shoulder.

"Let's go," he said reaching his arm around his wife and escorting her into the Jeep.

Cappie threw her bag into the backseat and got into the driver's seat.

"This is really happening today," he said taking a deep breath before starting the car.

"Yeah, this is really happening today," Casey replied finding Cappie's reaction somewhat humorous.

Cappie turned the Jeep on and pulled out of the garage.

"Now no speeding," Casey said remembering what Sylvia the child birth instructor had said.

Cappie drove as safe as he could to the hospital but it was hard. His right foot was like a lead brick that wanted to press as hard as it could on the gas pedal. Luckily for him the hospital was only about ten minutes away. He pulled up to the front door and put the car in park.

"I'm going to go and get you a wheelchair," he said getting out of the car and running inside the hospital doors.

Cappie returned seconds later with a wheelchair. He opened the door for Casey and slowly helped her out of the Jeep and into the chair. He then wheeled her right inside the door.

"I'm going to go park the Jeep. I'll be right back," he said running back out to park the car.

He returned less than a minute later with sweat pouring down his face and out of breath.

"You didn't have to run honey," said Casey.

"I just didn't want to leave you alone for too long," he replied through his deep breaths.

Cappie wheeled Casey to the elevator and up to the labor and delivery wing.

"Hi, I'm Casey Cappington," she said to the secretary.

"Ah yes, we've been expecting you," said the secretary. "Dr. Snyder called and said you were on your way."

She handed Cappie a few papers to fill out and sign as she prepared their wristbands to access the unit. Cappie quickly filled out everything he needed. He looked at his writing as he handed the papers back to the nurse. It was shakey and all over the place. He hoped he would be able to calm down as soon as they got into the birthing room.

They put on their wristbands and one of the nurses came out to take them to the room. They were off to have the baby.

* * *

**_A/N: Eek! Baby time! Next several chapters are very exciting (and emotional)! How did you guys like the start?_**


	57. Hope it Comes Soon

HOPE IT COMES SOON

Casey got into the hospital bed as soon as she got into the room. The nurses then worked busily to get her hooked up to an IV as Cappie paced nervously in the background.

"Dr. Snyder should be in soon," said the nurse as she finished Casey's IV. "She'll check and see how dilated you are which will give us a good indication on how far along you are."

"OK," Casey nodded.

The nurse gathered up her supplies and left the room. As soon as she was gone Cappie went right up to Casey.

"How are you feeling?" he asked.

"Better," Casey replied. "Something about being in the hospital has helped me calm down a little bit."

"So I guess now we wait," said Cappie pulling up a chair next to Casey.

Cappie reached up for Casey's hand and squeezed it tightly.

"Cap you can go home and change if you want," said Casey noticing Cappie was still in his black Dockers and a dress shirt. "It's going to be a while."

"I am not leaving your side," said Cappie as he kissed Casey's hand. "And I can have someone bring me some clothes later if I want."

"Speaking of someone," said Casey. "I already told my mom who was going to let dad and Rusty know."

"And I told Beaver who said he would let Ashleigh know," added Cappie.

"So I guess Evan and Rebecca and your parents are all that are left to be notified then," said Casey.

"I should probably call them now since it's still daylight out," said Cappie pulling out his cell phone.

His mom answered after two rings.

"Hi honey," she said.

"Hey mom," said Cappie. "I just wanted to call and let you know that Casey and I just got to the hospital. She's in labor."

"Oh I'm so excited!" Mrs. Cappington replied. "Put Casey on the phone."

"Mom says she wants to talk to you," Cappie said handing Casey the phone.

"Hey Mrs. Cappington," said Casey.

"How are you feeling sweetheart?" she asked.

"I'm doing alright for now," said Casey. "They just put the IV in me and I'm waiting for the doctor to get here."

"Well you're a strong girl Casey," Mrs. Cappington said. "This is going to be a very tough time for you but I know you can get through it. And I know Cappie will help you through it every step of the way."

"Thanks," Casey replied.

"Alright well I better stop gabbing and get things ready for us to head up there," Cappie's mom replied. "We are in Lexington, Kentucky right now. You're about a six to seven hour drive away from us. I hope we'll be able to make it before the baby gets here."

"I'll do what I can," said Casey jokingly. "And Kentucky isn't too far away. It's not like you are in California or something."

"We planned it this way darling," she replied. "We have our route mapped out and everything already. We wouldn't miss the birth of our granddaughter for the world."

"I'm sure she can't wait to meet you guys either," Casey replied.

"Well I'll go find Cap's dad and we'll get ourselves on the road. Hang in their Casey. We're all rooting for you."

"Thanks, that means a lot to me," Casey replied. "Keep in touch to let us know where you're at."

"We will," Mrs. Cappington said. "Love you."

"Love you too," Casey replied. "Bye."

Casey hung up the phone and handed it back to Cappie.

"I think they'll make it before she's born," said Casey.

Just then Dr. Snyder knocked and entered the room.

"Casey!" she said. "You're a few days early on me here."

"Sorry about that," Casey replied with a smile.

"So what time did your water break?" asked Dr. Snyder.

"I would say around four or four-thirty this afternoon," Casey replied. "We got here around five."

"And how about your contractions?" Dr. Snyder asked.

"They've been about twelve to fifteen minutes apart since my water broke," Casey replied. "They're painful but nothing I can't handle at this point."

"Well why don't we check and see how far along you are here," said Dr. Snyder sitting in a chair at the foot of Casey's bed and putting a glove on.

Casey winced in a little pain as the doctor put her fingers inside of her.

"You are around two to two and half centimeters," said Dr. Snyder.

"And she has to go to ten?" Cappie asked realizing this was going to take a lot longer than he thought.

"Yes, she has to go to ten," Dr. Snyder replied. "Usually it's about one centimeter an hour but I wouldn't swear by that since it is Casey's first pregnancy."

Casey grabbed Cappie's hand and squeezed as she felt another contraction come on.

"It's OK, breathe, deep breaths," said Cappie trying to coach Casey through it.

"I'm the doctor on call this weekend," said Dr. Snyder. "So I'll be in and out to check on you every hour or two to see how things are progressing."

"Thanks doctor," said Cappie as she walked out of the room.

"Thanks for holding my hand during that last contraction," said Casey. "It helped ease the pain a bit."

"That's because you were crushing my hand," Cappie replied jokingly as he texted on his cell phone.

Casey just rolled her eyes as she turned onto her side in the bed.

"There," he said closing his phone. "I just texted Evan to let him know. I wonder how many people we're allowed to have in the room during the birth?"

"I really don't want a whole party of people looking at my crotch Cap," said Casey.

"Oh yeah, I don't think I want some of our male visitors seeing that either," said Cappie with a small laugh.

"Well we can't pick some people and not others," said Casey.

"Then let's just make it the two of us," said Cappie. "We're the only two that really matter right?"

Casey just nodded her head and smiled. Cappie moved closer to Casey and kissed her forehead.

"I love you mommy," he said.

"I love you daddy," Casey replied.

Within the next hour Ashleigh and Beaver arrived. Ashleigh walked in the room carrying a bouquet of flowers for Casey.

"Hey Case," she said walking up to the bed. "These are for you."

"Thanks Ash," said Casey. "They're beautiful. You can set them on the table over there."

"Hey Casey," said Beaver approaching Casey while Ashleigh put the flowers on the table.

He oddly held out his hands like he wanted to hug Casey but was somewhat afraid to touch her.

"It's OK Beave," said Casey pulling him closer to her for a hug. "You're not going to hurt anything."

"Alright," said Beaver. "I just didn't want to hit the wrong button and have the baby come flying out or something."

Casey laughed.

"I would pay you a million dollars if it were that easy," she replied.

Beaver went over to sit on the couch next to Cappie and Ashleigh sat next to Casey's bed.

"So," she said. "How long is this thing supposed to last?"

"Anywhere between twelve and twenty-four hours," Casey replied with a sigh. "And at this point I'm leaning more towards the twenty-four hours because my contractions haven't been getting any closer together the past hour I've been here."

"Can't they like give you some super medicine to speed things up?" Ashleigh asked.

"I think I get that if labor goes past the twenty-four hour mark," Casey replied.

Ashleigh just raised her eyebrows, feeling bad for what Casey was going to have to go through.

"Hey can you do me a favor?" Casey asked.

"Anything," Ashleigh replied.

"If I give you my house keys can you run over to our house with Beaver and pick up some clothes for Cappie?" Casey asked. "I would hate to have him sit in those clothes for the next twenty-four hours."

"Sure," Ashleigh replied. "Anything in particular we should get?"

"Maybe like a pair of jeans or sweatpants and a t-shirt," Casey replied digging the keys out of her purse. "Everything is in his closet. You should be able to grab something quickly."

"I'm on it," said Ashleigh smiling as she took the keys from Casey.

She pulled Beaver off of the couch and the two of them left the room.

"Why did they leave in such a hurry?" Cappie asked.

"To go get some clothes for you," Casey replied.

"Sweetheart, I'm fine, really," said Cappie. "You need to worry more about you and the baby than you do me."

"Oh, ow, ow," said Casey gripping the bedrail as a contraction began to come on.

Cappie ran over to her and took her hand, noticing this contraction lasted a little bit longer than the previous ones.

"Whew," said Casey exhaling. "That one hurt."

"I could tell," said Cappie. "When can they start giving you the epidural?"

"Usually when I'm about four to five centimeters dilated," Casey replied. "It won't be for a while."

"Is there anything I can get you?" Cappie asked.

"Something to eat would be nice," Casey replied. "I just realized I haven't had dinner yet."

"I'll head down to the cafeteria and see what I can get you," said Cappie.

"Don't forget to get something for yourself too," said Casey. "I need you just as strong as me to get through this."

"I know," Cappie replied leaning in and giving Casey a soft kiss on the lips. "I'll be back soon. Don't do anything while I'm gone."

"We'll still be here," said Casey rubbing her stomach.

Cappie smiled as he swiftly left the room to find him and his wife some food.

* * *

**_A/N: So I just realized that I've been posting this story for a month now.....crazy. I really hope this is helping get the readers through the hiatus because I know it's fun for me to write and get me through too!_**

**_I hope you don't mind that I wrote the next few chapters with some "awww-moment" scenes because I really think having a baby can make people closer and reflect on the past so I hope you like the scenes._**

**_And now off to Chapter 58.........._**


	58. Two Tears

TWO TEARS

The hours began to tick away slowly. Cappie got dinner for him and Casey at the cafeteria. They finished right before Beaver and Ashleigh came back with Cappie's clothes. As much as he didn't want to admit it he was glad they had gone and got him a change of clothes. The ones he was wearing were becoming quite uncomfortable. Casey's parents finally made it around 8:30 as her dad had some trouble getting away from work.

Casey was doing well. She was staying hydrated with the IV fluids they were giving her. She was getting up and walking around the halls just about every hour. Her contractions were now around nine to ten minutes apart and lasting about forty-five seconds each. The pain was starting to get worse with each contraction and she hoped she would be ready for the epidural soon.

Cappie was maintaining his composure. He sat attentively next to Casey, only leaving her to let guests into the unit and going to the bathroom. The whole experience was becoming somewhat surreal for him. In a matter of hours he was going to become responsible for another life. His daughter was going to rely on him for just about everything she needed. But for right now he needed to focus more on Casey. He was doing everything he could to make sure Casey was comfortable and had everything she needed.

Around ten pm Dr. Snyder came back into the room. Everyone but Cappie and Mrs. Cartwright left the room to give Casey some privacy with the doctor.

"So how are things going?" asked Dr. Snyder.

"Much better once I can have that epidural," said Casey as she was wincing in pain.

"The nurse said your contractions are about nine minutes apart now," said Dr. Snyder.

"Yeah, something like that," Casey replied as she spread her legs open so the doctor could check her dilation.

Dr. Snyder removed her gloved hand with a sad expression on her face.

"Sorry Casey," she said. "You're only about three and a half centimeters now."

"What?" Casey almost yelled in shock. "It's been three hours since you last checked. I've only gone one and a half centimeters in three hours!"

"Shhh, calm down sweetheart," said Cappie stroking her forehead.

"I'll check back in another couple of hours," said Dr. Snyder throwing her glove away. "Hang in there Casey. You're doing fine."

Dr. Snyder patted Casey on the leg and walked out of the door.

"Honey things are going perfectly normal for your first pregnancy," said Mrs. Cartwright rubbing Casey's shoulder. "It's a slow process but the result is beautiful."

"I understand that mom," said Casey. "I just felt like I had made more progress than that in the past three hours, that's all."

Casey began to take several deep breaths as another contraction came on. Tears started to fall from her eyes.

"How about another walk?" suggested her mother.

Casey shook her head no, not wanting to go for another walk.

"Mom, can I just be alone with Cappie for a little bit?" Casey asked realizing all the company was becoming a little overwhelming.

"Sure honey," her mom replied.

She leaned down and kissed Casey on the cheek before leaving the room.

"We'll come and get you a little bit later," Casey said as her mom walked out the door.

"OK," her mom replied shutting the door.

"Something wrong babe?" asked Cappie

"Since I can't have my epidural yet," said Casey grimacing in pain. "I was hoping you could help me get into the whirlpool to see if that can help with the pain a little bit."

"Of course," Cappie replied.

He went over to the bag Casey had packed and got out the maternity bathing suit she had gotten for this occasion. He helped her out of her shirt and put the top of the bathing suit on. Casey stood up as Cappie helped her with the bottom of the suit also.

"Just sit on the edge of the bed while I get the water ready," he said.

Cappie ran over to the whirlpool and prepared the warm water for Casey.

"Are you ready?" he asked walking over to her once the water was ready.

"Aren't you going to join me?" Casey asked.

"I didn't know you wanted me to," Cappie replied.

"Your arms wrapped around me and the warm water just sound amazing right now," she said.

Cappie took off his jeans and t-shirt and put on a pair of shorts Ashleigh had brought him. He escorted Casey over to the whirlpool and they both stepped inside. Cappie sat down first as Casey sat in front of him and leaned on his chest. Cappie wrapped his arms around her and put both of his hands on her stomach.

"How does it feel?" Cappie asked her softly.

"Wonderful," Casey replied as she sank a little farther into the water.

Cappie rubbed his hands up and down Casey's stomach. Casey gripped the sides of the whirlpool as another contraction started. Cappie could actually feel it this time with his hands on her stomach.

"Just breathe sweetheart," Cappie whispered as he rubbed her stomach with a little more pressure.

Casey collapsed back against Cappie once she was able to relax. She began to cry.

"I'm sorry for crying Cap," she said trying to calm herself down. "I'm just so emotional right now."

"There's nothing to be sorry about," he replied. "You have every right to be emotional."

"You really are the greatest husband ever," said Casey turning to kiss Cappie on the cheek. "If I didn't have you here I don't think I could be doing this."

"Well, all that matters is that I'm here," said Cappie. "And that we are doing this. We are a team remember? You are not in this alone."

Casey didn't respond. Her crying had stopped. Cappie could never understand why but there was certainly something about his arms around Casey that calmed her. He reached his hand up and stroked a piece of hair out of her face. Her eyes were closed and Cappie could tell that she had fallen asleep. He relaxed a little more into the whirlpool as he wrapped his arms back around her.

Unfortunately Casey's nap didn't last for very long as she was awoken by another contraction. The two of them sat in the whirlpool for another ten minutes. Casey then decided the water was becoming too cold and got out. Cappie helped her dry off and get into her pajamas. She sat on the edge of the bed and watched Cappie dry off. As he put his jeans back on she walked up to him and wrapped her arms around his waist.

"I just wanted to thank you for my ten minute power nap," she said squeezing him tightly.

Cappie chuckled as he wrapped his arms around her shoulders.

"You don't have to thank me," he said softly to her. "I was just doing my job."

Casey leaned back from Cappie's tight embrace and kissed him on the lips.

"Aw you guys are just so cute," said someone behind them.

They broke away and turned to the door to see a nurse standing in the doorway.

"I just love young couples so in love like you guys," she said putting some extra blankets on Casey's bed. "How was the whirlpool?"

"It felt pretty good," Casey replied. "I actually fell asleep for a few minutes before I was woken suddenly by another contraction."

"Well hopefully you will be able to get some sleep tonight," the nurse replied. "You're going to need your rest for when it's time to start pushing."

"Have you been doing this for a while?" asked Casey as she went over to sit on the edge of the bed.

"Of course dear," the nurse replied. "Twenty years in labor and delivery to be exact."

"So you've probably seen a lot of first time mothers."

"A few I guess," the nurse replied with a smile.

"So from your experience," said Casey. "When do you think I'll even get to the part where I start pushing?"

"Honestly honey," said the nurse bending closer to Casey. "I would have to guess tomorrow afternoon sometime."

Casey almost collapsed back onto the bed when the nurse said this.

"I'm going to be in labor close to twenty-four hours at that point," said Casey, this time actually laying back in the bed.

"It's not a science dear," said the nurse. "There's no telling when the baby will come. You just asked me based on my experience."

"Well thanks for your answer," Casey replied with a sigh.

"The doctor did put a sleeping pill on your orders for the night," the nurse said. "It's completely safe for the baby. Did you want me to give it to you?"

"Maybe in another couple of hours," said Casey. "I'll put my light on when I'm ready for it."

"OK," said the nurse. "I'll see you in a bit."

Casey turned to Cappie when the nurse left.

"Why don't you go tell everyone to head home," said Casey. "I don't want to have them spend the night here in the hospital."

"Yeah, that's probably a good idea," said Cappie getting up.

"Tell them we'll call them if anything changes," added Casey. "And while you're at it call Evan and Bex and tell them to just go to our house and crash. There is no need for them to stop here."

Cappie just nodded his head as he walked out the door to inform everyone in the waiting room of the plans. Casey turned on her side and rested her head back on the pillows behind her. She was continuing to get contractions but they were becoming a little more manageable. She turned on the television waiting for Cappie to come back and waiting for her daughter to come into this world.

* * *

**_A/N: So in the next chapters Casey gets a visitor and we get a Cap/Evan scene :0)_**

**_And since the baby is almost here I wanted to ask you guys for any input you may have.....anything you guys want me to write about with the baby? Any milestones you would like to see or any characters you want to see interact with the baby? I just thought it would be fun to ask you guys and who knows, I could write a scene based on your suggestions. You can let me know in private message or reviews, doesn't matter to me!_**


	59. Stories

STORIES

After everyone left the hospital Casey was able to fall asleep for about an hour intermittently. At around midnight she gave up on trying to sleep and sat up in the bed. She looked around the room to see Cappie curled up asleep on the couch. He was covered up with a blanket and looked so peaceful sleeping. She was happy he was able to finally get to sleep.

A few minutes later the nurse entered the room.

"Casey, are you awake?" she asked softy.

"Yeah," Casey replied turning towards the door.

"There's someone here to see you," said the nurse. "I wasn't sure if I should let him in the unit or not."

"Who is it?" Casey asked sitting up in the bed.

"I didn't ask," the nurse replied. "But he's a skinny kid with curly hair."

Casey smiled.

"That's my brother Rusty," she said. "You can let him in."

"OK," the nurse replied leaving the room.

A minute later Rusty slowly made his way into the room.

"Hey Russ," said Casey starting to get out of bed.

"You don't have to get up," said Rusty walking over to her and giving her a hug.

Casey squeezed Rusty tightly. She was so happy to see him.

"Thanks for making the drive," said Casey backing away from Rusty.

"Where is everyone?" Rusty asked sitting down in a chair next to the bed.

"We told everyone to go home and get some sleep," said Casey. "I'm sorry we didn't call and tell you just to go home. It's going to be a while."

"It's OK," Rusty replied. "I'm really not that tired right now."

Rusty turned his gaze towards Cappie sleeping on the couch.

"How's he holding up?" Rusty asked.

"Surprisingly well," Casey replied with a smile. "I have to give him credit. He's been amazing so far."

"Well we all know Cap," said Rusty. "He's always going above and beyond for his family and friends."

"So are you excited to be an uncle?" asked Casey.

"It'll be weird," Rusty replied. "But I'm certainly up for the role. I just can't believe with everything you and Cap have been through you're here today in this position."

"Honestly, me neither," said Casey glancing over towards Cappie.

"I knew you two would be together someday," said Rusty. "I was secretly rooting for the two of you ever since I found out about your history freshman year."

"You were?" Casey asked.

"Of course," Rusty replied. "The guy is crazy about you Case. Remember when you brought Evan to see me at Doblers and I spit the shot in his face?"

Casey nodded her head.

"Well that was the first time I saw you and Cap together next to you and Evan together," said Rusty. "And without a doubt I saw the chemistry between you and Cappie. You looked at Cappie with such a sparkle in your eye compared to the way you looked at Evan. That's when I knew."

"And who knew we would be here now," said Casey looking around the hospital room.

"I know the pregnancy really wasn't planned or anything," said Rusty. "But looking back on it you have to admit it was kind of a blessing in disguise. The baby brought you and Cap together. It like forced the two of you to finally realize that you were meant to be together."

"Yeah, I guess it did," said Casey with a soft smile.

"People always look at me strange when I say my big bro married my big sis," said Rusty with a chuckle as he leaned back in the chair. "You two are really important in my life."

"I remember a time when those words would have never come out of your mouth," said Casey sadly.

"They may have not come out of your mouth Case," said Rusty. "But ever since I could remember I've looked up to you. You've always been important to me."

"Really?" asked Casey feeling bad for the way she had treated Rusty in the past.

"Yeah," Rusty replied. "Why do you think I wanted to rush a fraternity? It was because I saw how much fun you were having and how great of an experience you had in college. I wanted that too. You may not think so but you really have made quite an impact on my life Case."

"I never realized it that way," Casey replied. "Now I feel bad. I acted like you didn't even exist."

Casey looked down at the sheets sadly.

"Hey there's no reason to be dwelling on the past," said Rusty. "What matters the most is that we fixed that relationship. We may not have started off right but I say we're on the right track now."

"I really do care about you Russ," said Casey looking up at him. "You are the best brother a sister could have. I'm sorry I didn't realize it earlier."

"No hard feelings," said Rusty taking Casey's hand. "We have plenty of wonderful things to experience together from here on out."

"Like what?" Casey asked.

"Well for starters the birth of my niece," said Rusty with a smile. "And then hopefully someday my wedding and maybe another niece of nephew for me."

"What's up with everyone talking about having more kids when I haven't even gotten through the first one yet?" asked Casey with a laugh.

"I think because everyone knows you and Cappie aren't going to be satisfied with just one," said Rusty.

"Well I'm glad everyone else knows my future," said Casey. "Because it's still up in the air for me."

Rusty just smiled at his sister. He then noticed her hand squeezing his much tighter. He looked up at her confused.

"Sorry," said Casey. "Had a contraction. For some reason I always have to squeeze something during them."

Rusty laughed.

"Well you can have my hand anytime sis," he said.

Just then Cappie's cell phone rang. Casey reached for it quickly on her bedside table before it woke Cappie up.

"Hello?" she said.

"Casey what are you still doing awake?" Mrs. Cappington asked.

"I'm just here talking with my brother," Casey replied. "Your son is actually the one who is sleeping."

"That's my boy," said Mrs. Cappington with a laugh. "I was calling to see how things were going. We're about an hour or so away from you guys."

"Actually things are going really slow," Casey replied. "So if you want just want to stop and stay somewhere and come in the morning that would be fine."

"Are you sure?" she asked.

"Yeah," Casey replied. "My contractions are really not that bad and the last time the doctor checked I was only three and a half centimeters dilated. So it's probably going to be a while."

"We've never gone camping in Chicago," said Mrs. Cappington. "Sounds like fun."

"Well good," said Casey. "I'll see you in the morning then?"

"You sure will sweetheart."

"OK bye," said Casey hanging up the phone.

"Cap's parents are actually going to make it?" Rusty asked as Casey set the phone back on the table.

"Yup," she replied. "They were coming up from Kentucky."

"That's awesome," said Rusty. "I'm sure Cap is really happy about that."

"Sure is," Casey replied.

Rusty yawned.

"Why don't you go ahead and go home," said Casey noticing Rusty was becoming tired. "You can come back tomorrow with mom and dad."

"I hate to leave you sis."

"I'm fine," Casey replied. "I'm just going to ask the nurse for my sleeping pill anyway and try and get some sleep."

Rusty stood up and wrapped his arms around his sister.

"You're an amazing girl Case," he said squeezing her tightly. "I'm so lucky to have you as my sister."

"I'm even luckier to have you as my brother," Casey replied.

"I guess I'll see you tomorrow for hopefully the big day," said Rusty backing away from Casey.

"Tomorrow WILL be the day if I have anything to do with it," said Casey with a laugh.

Rusty just chuckled and went to the door. He opened it and turned back around to look at Casey.

"I love you sis," he said.

"I love you too Russ," Casey replied waving at Rusty as he walked out the door.

* * *

_**A/N: I just love Casey and Rusty scenes so I thought this would be a cute one to write. Hope you guys liked it :0)**_


	60. Day Has Come

DAY HAS COME

Cappie woke up around seven in the morning to Casey moaning in pain. He was upset that she hadn't woke him up earlier. She was able to get about six hours of sleep because the sleeping pill pretty much knocked her out. But once it wore off she was up with the worst contractions she had experienced so far. Cappie was beginning to get a little more nervous at this point. First because it looked like it was nearing the time for him to become a father. But secondly because he was worried about Casey. It really hurt him to see her in such pain, especially when there was nothing he could do about it.

Between seven and eight Casey was all over the room. She would put her body in any position possible if it relieved some of the pain. At one point she would be sitting on the physio-ball, the next she would be on her hands and knees on the bed. Cappie followed her around like a little puppy dog. He rubbed her back, squeezed her hand, did whatever she needed him to do. Friends and family all congregated in the waiting room by eight. When the nurse came in the room Cappie would sneak out to say hi and let them know what was going on.

Around eight thirty Dr. Snyder stopped in Casey's room.

"These contractions are getting so much worse," said Casey through her clenched teeth. "Is it epidural time yet?"

"I'll take a look and see," Dr. Snyder said putting her glove on.

Casey laid back down on the bed and let Dr. Snyder examine her.

"Good news," she said pulling her hand out. "You're up to six centimeters now."

"Oh thank god," said Casey as she let a deep breath out. "I was going to get so discouraged if it hadn't grown any bigger."

"So I can go ahead and let the anesthesiologist know that you want the epidural," said Dr. Snyder. "But I have to warn you that the epidural is known to slow down the labor process."

Casey turned to Cappie with a worried look at her face.

"I'm here for you, whatever you decide," he said squeezing her hand.

Just then another contraction came on. This was one of the worst yet. Casey squeezed her eyes shut and began her breathing exercises to get through it. She looked at Dr. Snyder after the contraction ended.

"I think I'll do the epidural," she said to her.

"I'll order it and hopefully they'll be up in the next hour," Dr. Snyder replied as she left the room.

"We should probably go for another walk now," said Cappie turning to her. "Because you won't be able to walk once they put the epidural in."

"OK," said Casey as she sat up on the edge of the bed.

Cappie took her IV pole as Casey tied her hospital gown and the two of them walked out into the hallway. After about a minute of walking Casey had to stop and grab for the rail along the wall because another contraction had come on.

"Just breathe it out sweetheart, you can do this," said Cappie as he coached her through it.

A little less than a minute later Casey stood up and continued walking. She then finally reached her destination, the waiting room. Everyone stood up as she came into the room.

"Casey what are you doing here?" said Mrs. Cartwright coming up to her.

"Going for a walk," said Casey. "Just wanted to let everyone know I'm now six centimeters and will hopefully be getting the epidural soon."

"Well come and sit for a bit before you head back," said Mrs. Cartwright assisting Casey into one of the chairs.

Cappie found himself standing off to the side as his mom, Casey's mom, Rebecca and Ashleigh all crowded around his wife. Evan came up to him and put his hand on his shoulder.

"How are you holding up man?" he asked.

"Alright I guess," Cappie replied with a sigh. "I at least got some sleep last night."

"Hey thanks for letting us crash at your place," said Evan. "Saved us from trying to find a hotel."

"No problem," Cappie replied. "It's not like we were going to be there."

"So," said Evan as he put his hands in his pockets. "You're going to be a father here pretty soon."

"Crazy isn't it?" said Cappie. "I always thought between the two of us you would be the one with kids first. You've always been more focused on the future than I ever will be."

"I have to give it to you Cap," said Evan. "You really have stepped up though. Most guys our age would run the other way as fast as they could if they found out they got a girl pregnant. But you've really hung in there. I'm proud of you."

"Thanks Ev," Cappie replied watching the girls coach Casey through another contraction. "But it really wasn't that hard to step up. I would do anything for Casey. It's like this whole experience has been second nature to me because I love her so much. I've always loved her."

"I know," Evan replied. "And you're going to be one hell of a dad."

"It's just really making my head spin thinking about how I'm going to be responsible for another life," Cappie admitted. "I'm going to have to take her into consideration with everything I do."

"Honestly Cap, haven't you already been doing that?"

Cappie turned and looked towards Evan.

"I mean look at what has happened already," continued Evan. "I think if you really think about it a lot of the decisions you've made since Casey got pregnant has been based on the baby. So it really won't be that much different once she's born."

"You got a point there," said Cappie nodding his head.

"Well, you don't call me your friend for nothing," said Evan with a smile.

"I'm really glad we got passed all that," said Cappie. "Even though some of the best Kappa Tau pranks ever came out of our feuding, I would still much rather us be friends."

"I'll never forget waking up to farm animals in my bed," said Evan shaking his head.

"That was a pretty good one," Cappie laughed. "I can always arrange for something like that again if, you know, you wanted to take a fond trip down memory lane."

"I'll pass," Evan replied.

Cappie saw Casey begin to stand up from the chair.

"Well I guess we're headed back to the room," he said. "Thanks for being here Ev, it really means a lot to me."

"No problem," Evan replied giving Cappie a hug. "I wouldn't miss this for the world."

Cappie backed away and smiled at Evan as he made his way over to Casey.

"I'm ready to head back," she said taking his hand.

"I'll be back with updates later," said Cappie waving to everyone in the waiting room. "It really means a lot to us that you're all here."

With that the waiting room door shut and Cappie and Casey headed back to the birthing room. Casey immediately sat on the physio-ball trying to get through another contraction.

"This anesthesiologist better hurry his ass up," said Casey rolling her hips on the ball. "I'm about to start screaming."

Cappie just smiled as he sat down on the couch.

Around twenty minutes and numerous contractions later the anesthesiologist knocked on the door and came into the room.

"Boy are we glad to see you," said Cappie who was seriously considering asking for an x-ray of his hand after all the sqeezing Casey was doing to it.

The doctor laughed as he began to set up things for the epidural.

"OK Mrs. Cappington, I need you to lay on your side and pull your legs up towards you as best as you can," said the doctor taking his place behind Casey.

A couple minutes later Casey felt a little poke in her back and then a cold sensation of fluid running along her spine.

"You should feel relief very soon," said the doctor cleaning up his supplies. "Have the nurse page me if you are having any problems."

"Thanks doctor," said Cappie as he left the room.

The nurse came in shortly after the anesthesiologist left and hooked Casey up to a monitor that measured her contractions and the baby's heart rate.

"You're definitely having a pretty strong contraction right now," said the nurse looking at the monitor.

"This is wonderful," said Casey. "I can feel the pressure of the contraction but there is hardly any pain at all. I could get used to this."

"Well don't get too comfortable," said the nurse with a chuckle. "Once you get to the ten centimeters we turn it off."

Casey just grunted as the nurse left the room.

"Hey at least you get relief for a little while," said Cappie rubbing her shoulder.

"True," Casey replied as she adjusted the pillow behind her head.

"Is there anything I can get you?" Cappie asked.

"No, I think I'm going to try and take a little nap," said Casey.

"I don't suppose you would want some company?" Cappie asked.

"I'd welcome it," Casey smiled as she scooted towards the edge of the bed.

Cappie crawled into the bed next to her as Casey nestled into his arms. The two of them fell asleep quickly knowing that sleep would not be coming easily in the near future for them.

The two of them woke up around eleven-thirty. Since Casey was feeling better with the epidural they decided to invite all of the guests in the room for lunch. They ordered a couple of pizzas and talked anxiously about the baby. All their college friends and Cappie's parents were trying to get Cappie and Casey to spill the beans on the baby's name but they decided they weren't going to let them know until she was born. Too many people already knew between Rusty and Casey's parents. They wanted it to be a surprise for everyone else.

Dr. Snyder came in the room a little before two that afternoon. All of the men but Cappie left the room but Casey asked for the girls to stay. Dr. Snyder checked how far along Casey was.

"Well, you've done it," she said with a smile. "Ten centimeters."

Everyone in the room gasped knowing that the time for the birth was almost here.

"I'm going to go and get changed and have the birthing nursing come in," said Dr. Snyder. "She'll help you with the first stages of the pushing the baby into the birth canal."

Casey nervously looked around the room as Dr. Snyder left.

"This is it!" said Ashleigh excitedly coming up to Casey's bed. "I'll be out there rooting for you."

She leaned down and gave Casey a hug. Rebecca followed and the two of them left the room.

"Are you sure you two are going to be alright?" asked Mrs. Cartwright.

"Yeah, we can stay and help if you want," added Mrs. Cappington.

"We're OK mom," said Cappie. "This is something Casey and I decided we want to do on our own. We can't have you guys stay and not include everyone else."

"Sure you can, they don't care," said Mrs. Cartwright jokingly.

"Mom, I'll be fine," Casey reassured her.

"I know you will sweetheart," said Mrs. Cartwright bending down and kissing Casey on her forehead.

"Now just remember to take your time and breathe deeply," said Mrs. Cappington approaching Casey's bed. "Don't wear yourself out too much in the beginning."

"OK," Casey replied with a nod of her head.

"And Cap," said his mom turning to him. "Try to stay as calm as you can. And coach Casey and make sure you tell her how much you love her. I know when I had you words like that helped a lot."

"I will mom," said Cappie giving her a hug. "I love you."

"Love you too baby," she said backing away.

The two moms took each other's hand and slowly walked towards the door.

"Good luck guys," said Mrs. Cartwright as they walked out the door.

Casey turned to Cappie as they left.

"Good job standing your ground," she said to him. "They were trying to make us feel guilty for not having them in here."

"You think?" Cappie asked jokingly.

Casey let out a small smile at Cappie and then reached for his hand.

"This is it babe," she said with a deep breath. "We're finally going to meet our little girl."

Cappie could feel a wave emotions overcome him with Casey's words. He also took a couple of deep breaths to try and calm his nerves.

"I can't wait to meet her," he said as he leaned down to give Casey a kiss on the lips.

* * *

**_A/N: So this is it! Time for baby Cappington to come into the world! Hope you guys liked these past two chapters. I thought there was some really sweet interactions between the characters._**

**_Oh and I loved all your suggestions for the baby.....I'm actually surprised in the number of your suggestions that have already been written so I don't think you'll be disappointed :0)_**

**_Thanks again for reading......new chapter(s) up tomorrow! (I'm torn as to whether I want to post just one or two so we'll see)_**


	61. Change in My Life

CHANGE IN MY LIFE

As soon as they got the news Casey was ready to push Cappie went out to the waiting room to let everyone know. He came back in the room just before the nurse arrived.

"Everyone said they are going to be thinking about you Case," he said. "They can't wait to meet the baby."

The birthing nurse came into the room around two-thirty with all the supplies needed to have the baby.

"How are you doing dear?" she asked.

"OK," Casey replied. "Beginning to get a little nervous."

"There's nothing to be nervous about," she said. "This is just a natural part of life."

"I know," Casey replied.

"I'm going to start first by turning off the epidural," she said. "You should probably start feeling the contractions again in about ten minutes."

Casey nervously looked at Cappie.

"It's alright honey," he said pushing the hair off her forehead. "Just stay calm and remember your breathing."

Sure enough, about ten minutes later Casey was in the worst pain she had ever experienced. She also became nauseated which the nurse explained to her that it was normal to feel that way.

"Each time you have a contraction Casey I want you to push through it," said the nurse.

Casey nodded her head.

"Here comes one now," she said looking at the monitor. "Bear down and push."

Casey pushed with all her might but felt like she was getting nowhere.

"And relax," said the nurse after the fifteen second push.

Casey collapsed back down on the bed but her rest didn't last very long. She pushed through another contraction minutes later. This continued on for another forty minutes. At that point Casey felt like she was worn out.

"I don't know how much more I can do this," she said to Cappie.

"You can do this," said Cappie taking a new cold washcloth and putting it on Casey's forehead. "I love you."

His words seemed to give Casey a little encouragement because she went back to pushing with the next contraction.

"Is this even working?" Casey asked the nurse as she relaxed.

"Of course it is," the nurse replied. "I think a few more good pushes and we'll be ready to bring the doctor in and have a baby."

Casey again became encouraged and pushed through the next four contractions as hard as she could.

"You can do this baby, I love you," Cappie rooted right by her side.

"OK Casey," said the nurse. "Take a little breather. I'm going to have them page Dr. Snyder."

The nurse went over to the phone and spoke with someone that it was time for Dr. Snyder. She then came back over to Casey.

"OK Casey," she said. "The doctor should be here soon along with a couple more nurses."

Casey nervously took some deep breaths to get through the contractions she was having. She wanted to push so badly but she didn't because the doctor wasn't in the room yet. She looked over at Cappie who had his eyes locked on her.

"I love you," he said softly.

"I love you too," she replied.

A few minutes later the doctor and two more nurses entered the room with the baby carrier.

"We finally made it Casey," said Dr. Snyder.

"We did," Casey uttered softly.

"Let's get some oxygen on her," said Dr. Snyder observing Casey was already pretty worn out.

The nurse came over and put the nasal cannula on Casey.

"How has the baby's heart rate been?" Dr. Snyder asked the other nurse.

"Normal," the nurse replied. "No drops with pushing."

"Excellent," said Dr. Snyder putting on her gloves and standing at the foot of the bed.

"OK Casey, we're going to need your legs bent up way in the air," said the nurse. "So dad if you could take the right leg I'll take the left so we can support her."

Cappie nervously brought Casey's leg up to the right position.

"We have a pretty good contraction coming on Casey," said Dr. Snyder. "I want you to start pushing now."

Casey pushed with all of her might, bearing down as much as she could.

"Good Casey, good," said Dr. Snyder. "Hold it for another few seconds."

Casey pushed until she couldn't hold it anymore and relaxed.

"You're doing great honey," said Cappie.

Casey felt another contraction come on and began to push. This time she let out a moan as she pushed.

"Keep going, keep going," said the nurse holding her other leg.

"Oh my god," Casey breathed out as she relaxed from pushing.

"We're making good progress Casey, keep going," said Dr. Snyder.

Casey pushed through several more contractions, feeling weaker with each one. After the last contraction Casey looked up at Cappie. He was staring between her legs and she noticed his eyes were glossed over.

"OK Casey I see the top of the head," said Dr. Snyder.

Casey looked down and saw the first part of her daughter. Somehow she found some strength deep down inside of her. She could do this. She felt her next contraction come on and pushed down with everything she had.

"Keep going, keep going," said Dr. Snyder.

"Push, push," said the nurse.

"You're doing it honey, you're doing it," said Cappie.

Casey rested just to catch her breath and began to push again.

"Great Casey," said Dr. Snyder. "Here comes the head."

Cappie let go of Casey's leg with one of his hands briefly to wipe the tears out of his eyes. He had never seen a more beautiful site.

"She's coming honey," he said looking at Casey. "You're almost there, just another few pushes."

As soon as the next contraction came Casey curled up like she was doing a sit-up and pushed. After a minute of pushing she wanted to relax so badly. But everyone around her was telling her not to stop and to keep pushing.

"Awesome Casey, you're almost there," said Dr. Snyder.

Casey saw the doctor finally reach her arms between her legs. She was preparing to get the baby. Casey knew this last push was going to be it.

"Give it everything you got Casey," said the nurse.

Casey pushed like she never pushed before. Less than a minute later Dr. Snyder had the baby in her hands.

"Congratulations mom and dad," she said as she placed the baby on Casey's stomach. "It's a girl and time of birth, three forty-five pm."

Instantly Casey began to sob uncontrollably. She put her arms around the baby as Cappie leaned down and put his head right against hers. It was at that moment that the baby started to cry. Cappie kissed Casey on the cheek.

"You were amazing sweetheart," he said as he also reached his hand down to touch the baby.

Casey was speechless. All of her emotions just came pouring out in her tears. Feeling her baby on her stomach, finally out into the world, was an indescribable experience.

"Dad would you like to cut the cord?" Dr. Snyder asked.

Cappie took the pair of scissors from the doctor and cut the cord right where he was instructed to do so.

"We're going to take baby right over here to clean her up and get her checked out," said one of the nurses taking the baby out of Casey's arms.

Cappie followed the nurse over to the other side of the room and watched attentively as they cleaned off the baby, checked her heartbeat, length, weight, and wrapped her up in a couple of blankets.

"Here you go dad," said the nurse reaching the baby towards Cappie after she was all wrapped up in the blankets.

Cappie froze for a second realizing this was going to be the first time he was going to hold his daughter. He took her gently into his arms.

"Hey little girl," he said softly to her, tears pouring slowly down his cheeks. "Happy birthday."

Cappie leaned closer and gave her a kiss on the cheek.

Casey stared at her husband and child from the other side of the room. She got more emotional seeing the two of them together. The way Cappie held her was so gentle and loving. And surprisingly, it seemed natural for him.

Cappie looked up and saw Casey staring at him. He slowly walked over to her with the baby.

"You need to say hi to your mommy," he said to the baby. "She just did a whole lot of work to bring you into this world."

Cappie passed the baby into Casey's arms.

"Hi," said Casey, barely audible through her tears. "I'm your mommy."

* * *

**_A/N: So I honestly cried a little bit just writing this chapter.....lol._**

**_Let me know what you guys think of it....I hope you liked it._**

**_I promise I will post chapter 62 later today. I don't have the time to do it right now but keep checking back later this afternoon/evening for it._**


	62. Beautiful Eyes

BEAUTIFUL EYES

Cappie sat in the chair next to Casey's bed and held the baby close for the next half hour. Casey had to go through the final stages of labor and he didn't want to leave her side. The baby had fallen asleep in his arms. Cappie made sure to check every so often that she was still breathing. He couldn't believe how overprotective he was being already. He looked down at his little miracle and couldn't stop smiling. Seeing the baby confirmed what he already knew; Casey and he had made the right decision. Casey was right, after seeing his daughter there was no way in hell he could ever give her up for adoption. And this moment would never have happened if they went the other route. Cappie looked over at Casey. She was staring at him trying as best as she could to keep her eyes open. He was so proud of her. This experience made him fall in love with his wife one hundred times more.

Cappie stood up and sat on the edge of Casey's bed. The room was quiet finally. It was just the three of them. All of the doctors and nurses had left. He set the baby next to Casey on the bed.

"I think she looks like you," Casey said studying her daughter for the first time.

"You think?" Cappie asked.

"Well sure, look at the brown hair she came out with," Casey replied. "She sure didn't get that from me."

"Yeah but she has your eyes," said Cappie softly. "Those same eyes that are going to steal all the boys' hearts one day just like yours stole mine."

Cappie leaned down and kissed Casey softly on the lips. Casey yawned soon after.

"I think it might be good for you to get a nap in sweetheart," said Cappie.

"I can't," said Casey. "We've got a whole waiting room of people waiting to come in here."

"I would rather you get your rest," said Cappie. "I'll take her out and let them meet her. Then they can come in here later once you get some rest."

Casey yawned again.

"I hate how you're always right," she said softly wrapping her hands around the pillow to get comfortable.

Cappie picked up the baby.

"Do you need anything?" he asked before walking out the door.

But there was no answer. He looked back at Casey. She had fallen fast asleep. Cappie just shook his head as he walked out the door. He held the baby tightly to his chest as he walked down the hallway. His heart started to beat a little faster as he neared the waiting room. He knew everyone would be excited. He took a deep breath and opened the door to the waiting room. As soon as he stepped in everyone stood up and gasped.

"Oh my gosh!" Mrs. Cartwright said being the first to run up to Cappie.

"Ladies and Gentleman," said Cappie clearing his throat as everyone gathered around him. "I would like to introduce you to our daughter, Cadence April Cappington."

Cappie's mom immediately began to cry as she stepped towards him.

"You, you named her after me?" she asked tears streaming down her face.

"Yes mom," said Cappie nodding his head.

She wrapped her arms around him while Cappie used his free arm to hug her back.

"How's Casey?" asked Mr. Cartwright.

"She's doing great," said Cappie. "She's pretty worn out and taking a nap right now. That's why I figured I would bring the baby out to see you guys now and you can join us in the room after she wakes up."

"Cappie she's so beautiful," said Ashleigh touching the baby's cheek.

"OK, time for grandma to hold her," said Mrs. Cartwright butting in playfully.

Cappie carefully handed the baby into her arms.

"Oh, what a little angel," she said, tears starting to form in the corner of her eyes.

"Congratulations bro," said Rusty coming up to Cappie and giving him a hug.

"Thanks Russ," he replied. "The birth was the most amazing experience. I couldn't even begin to put it in words."

"So everything went OK?" asked Evan who joined in the conversation.

"Everything was fine," Cappie replied. "I was a little nervous Casey would run out of strength to push near the end. But she's a trooper and somehow found some strength deep down to bring her into the world."

"Casey's a tough girl," said Rusty with a small laugh. "I should know."

"I just love the name Cadence," said Rebecca. "Good choice."

"Thanks," Cappie replied. "It took us a while to come up with something but once we heard that name it was just like we knew."

Mrs. Cartwright passed the baby along to Cappie's mom.

"Excuse me," said Cappie as he walked over to his mom. "So what do you think mom?"

"Cap, she's perfect," his mom replied. "She kind of even looks like you."

"Well I would hope so," said Cappie with a laugh.

"I can't believe I'm a grandma," she said. "You make me feel so old."

Cappie just rolled his eyes as he watched his mom kiss the baby on the cheek.

"Congratulations son," said Mr. Cappington patting him on the back.

"Thanks dad," Cappie replied.

"That was surely nice of you to give her your mom's name as her middle name," he said.

"Well next to Casey and Cadence mom is the most important girl in my life," said Cappie. "And since we're all so much closer now, I thought giving her mom's name was more than appropriate."

"You sure made your mom's day," he replied staring at his wife holding the baby tight.

"OK, auntie Ashleigh needs a turn," said Ashleigh walking up to Cappie's mom.

Mrs. Cappington kissed Cadence softly as she handed her to Ashleigh.

"She's so light," said Ashleigh when she had Cadence in her arms.

"Six pounds, nine ounces to be exact," Cappie replied.

Ashleigh passed the baby to Rebecca after holding her for a few minutes. Rebecca walked up to Evan.

"You wanna hold her?" she asked him.

Evan hesitated.

"I'm not sure," he said.

"Come on," Rebecca egged him on. "You need some practice. This could be us someday."

Evan took a deep breath as Rebecca placed the baby in his arms.

"Wow," he said softly as he rocked her back and forth. "This is incredible Cap."

He turned to look at Rebecca and smiled.

"This isn't so bad," he said. "I might be able to get used to this."

"Let's work on planning our wedding before thinking about that," said Rebecca with a smile.

Evan passed the baby along to Rusty as Cappie noticed Beaver sitting in a chair in the corner of the room.

"You got her?" Cappie asked Rusty.

"Of course Cap," Rusty assured him. "My niece is always in good hands."

Cappie nodded his head as he walked over to sit next to Beaver.

"Why aren't you joining the party?" he asked him.

"Just laying low," Beaver replied.

"Don't you want to hold the baby?" Cappie asked.

"I will at some point," Beaver replied. "When she's like four and can land on her feet if something goes wrong."

Cappie laughed.

"Seriously Beave," he said. "There is nothing to be scared of. If I can hold her anyone can hold her."

Rusty walked over to the two of them.

"Your turn Beaver," he said.

Beaver tensed up and looked at Cappie. Cappie gave him an encouraging look as Rusty set her in his arms. At first Beaver just sat there staring at the baby. He really couldn't believe he was holding her. He looked up at everyone and smiled. But seconds later the baby started crying. Beaver gave Cappie a disappointing look.

"Of course she starts crying when I start holding her," he said.

"Don't take it personal," said Cappie. "She's been passed around a lot. She's probably getting hungry or just needs to be changed."

"Well that's all you daddy," said Beaver giving Cadence back to Cappie not wanting any part in changing baby diapers.

Cappie stood and tried to get Cadence to calm down by rocking her back and forth. She stopped after a few more seconds and fell back asleep.

"Well aren't you a natural," said his mom approaching him.

"Don't let her fool you," said his dad half jokingly. "It's never that easy to get them to stop crying."

"Oh well, at least I can say I got one under my belt," said Cappie proudly.

Cappie mingled with the visitors for a while longer, holding his sleeping daughter tightly the entire time.

"It's been close to an hour," said Cappie walking towards the door. "I should probably go and check on Casey."

"Cap we're all pretty hungry," said Mr. Cartwright. "You guys enjoy a little family time while I take everyone out to celebrate."

"Thanks Mr. C," said Ashleigh.

"I'm sure you can all join us in the room when you get back," said Cappie. "Have a good dinner."

"Do you want us to bring you guys anything back?" asked Mrs. Cartwright.

"Na, Casey and I will probably get something here," replied Cappie. "Thanks though."

With that Cappie walked out of the waiting room and back down the hall. He looked down again at the beautiful baby he was carrying. Each time he looked at her he saw a little bit of himself and a little bit of Casey in her. It was like she was the perfect mesh of the two of them.

* * *

**_A/N: So yay to jamorl1 for guessing the baby name correctly! Looks like we were thinking the same thing :0)_**

**_Hope you guys liked the second chapter for the day. Sorry I couldn't get it up earlier._**

**_Keep the reviews coming to let me know what you think and as always, thanks for reading!_**


	63. Smile

SMILE

Casey was still asleep when Cappie walked back into the room. He quietly walked over and placed Cadence in the baby carrier the hospital provided. He wheeled it next to the bed and climbed in with Casey. She instantly felt his presence and snuggled right up next to him.

"Are you awake sweetheart?" he asked.

"Yeah," Casey said softly. "Where's Cadence?"

"She's in the carrier right next to us," Cappie replied.

Casey lifted her head up slightly to see her daughter sound asleep.

"How did it go showing her off to everyone?" Casey asked.

"It was fine," Cappie said. "She actually started crying as soon as Beaver held her."

"Aw, poor Beaver," said Casey.

"Yeah but I took her back into my arms and rocked her back and forth for a bit and she stopped," Cappie said proudly.

"She did?" Casey asked somewhat shocked.

"My dad told me not to get used to it," said Cappie squeezing his wife a little tighter. "But it was still a really cool moment."

"Did your mom cry when you told everyone her name?" Casey asked.

"Oh of course," Cappie replied. "I knew she would."

"I bet they are all waiting patiently to come in and see me huh?" Casey asked.

"They all asked about you," said Cappie. "But your dad took everyone to dinner to celebrate so they won't be back here until later to see you."

"Leave it to my dad to go celebrate without the people they're actually celebrating for," said Casey with a giggle.

"I don't mind though," said Cappie squeezing Casey a little tighter. "I wanted some more alone time with my family anyway."

Cappie kissed Casey softly on the lips. He backed away and sat up to pick Cadence up out of the carrier. Cappie rested Cadence between the two of them as he laid back down in the bed.

"Here we are," said Casey as she put her hand on top of Cadence. "Cappie, Casey and Cadence Cappington."

"Has a nice ring to it doesn't it?" Cappie asked with a smile.

"It does," Casey nodded her head back.

The two of them just laid there and moved their gazes from each other to the baby.

Their family time was soon broken up by a knock on the door.

"How is everything?" said the nurse as she entered the room.

"Just fine," Casey replied.

"Have you fed Cadence yet?" the nurse asked.

"No," Casey replied. "Was I supposed to?"

"She is probably hungry," the nurse replied. "Why don't we give it a try."

"I guess I'll move," said Cappie as he stood up and took a seat on the couch.

Casey scooped up Cadence in her arms and sat up in the bed.

"Breastfeeding should be very natural for the baby," said the nurse. "All you have to do is hold her in the right position and she should know just what to do."

Casey exposed her breast and held the baby right up to it. Almost instantly Cadence latched on to her nipple and began to feed.

"Wow, she did know just what to do," said Casey. "But it kind of hurts."

"It will," the nurse replied. "You may get used to it but some women don't. It just depends."

"I guess I endured enough pain for the little girl earlier today," said Casey. "This is nothing compared to that."

The nurse just smiled at Casey and turned to walk out of the room.

"The baby should stop when she's finished. Hit your call button if you have any problems," she said walking out of the door.

Cappie stood up and sat on the edge of Casey's bed. He had a big smile on his face.

"What?" asked Casey.

"Nothing," said Cappie continuing to smile. "It's just kind of sexy to see you breastfeeding."

Casey just rolled her eyes at Cappie. She looked down at Cadence who was continuing to feed.

"Cap, I'm not sure how much of this I can tolerate," said Casey, wincing in pain.

"Well your mom got you one of those pump things at the shower," said Cappie. "You can start using that."

"Guess it wouldn't hurt to try when we get home," Casey replied.

The two of them sat in silence for a few minutes, just watching the baby eat.

"Watching her eat is making me hungry," said Cappie standing up. "I'm heading to the cafeteria, do you want me to grab you something?"

"Sure," Casey replied. "Something light like a salad sounds good."

"You sure aren't pregnant anymore," Cappie laughed. "Pregnant Casey would never have asked for a salad."

"Haha," said Casey rolling her eyes. "Just hurry back."

Cappie headed out the door just as Cadence stopped eating.

"Oh, well, I guess you're done then," said Casey covering herself back up

She laid Cadence on the bed in front of her and unwrapped her from the blankets. She began to really examine her since she hadn't gotten the chance to do so yet. She counted ten fingers and ten toes. She watched Cadence move her arms and legs around. She smiled realizing that everything was just fine. Her baby was perfect.

After her and Cappie had dinner their family and friends came back to the hospital and gathered in Casey's room. Both mothers immediately ran to Casey and wrapped their arms around her.

"We are just so proud of you," said Mrs. Cartwright. "Cadence is absolutely beautiful."

"Thanks mom," Casey replied.

"And thanks for thinking of me when you guys named her," said Mrs. Cappington. "You have no idea how much that means to me."

"Well you're very welcome," Casey replied.

Everyone began to gather around the baby on the other side of the room. Rebecca used this time to talk to Casey.

"Congratulations Case," she said sitting on the edge of the bed. "I'm really happy for you."

"Thanks so much for being here," said Casey. "I know you and Evan had a long drive from CRU."

"You're one of my best friends now Casey," said Rebecca. "I wouldn't have missed this for anything."

"Hard to believe two years ago we were worst enemies," said Casey with a small smile.

"Yeah, we didn't get started on the right foot with everything that happened with Evan," Rebecca replied. "I'm still really sorry about that."

"It's OK, really," said Casey. "It may even be some kind of blessing it actually happened. Because if it didn't I probably wouldn't be here today having a baby with Cappie. I would probably still be with Evan."

"I highly doubt it," Rebecca replied.

Casey gave her a confused look.

"Case, even when you were with Evan you still had feelings for Cappie," continued Rebecca. "Everyone knew it. It was only a matter of time before you acted upon them."

"I guess you're right," Casey sighed as she looked over at Cappie holding their daughter. "He really is amazing."

"So I've kind of been meaning to ask you something," said Rebecca.

Casey turned her gaze towards Rebecca.

"As you know Evan and I are planning our wedding for the summer after I graduate," she said. "And I was wondering if you would be one of my bridesmaids?"

"Aw Bex I'd love to!" said Casey leaning over to give her a hug. "Thank you so much for asking me."

"And I was also wondering," said Rebecca. "Since Cadence will be close to two at that time if she could be our flower girl?"

"She would be honored," said Casey with a smile.

"And maybe you could even pop out a ring bearer for me too," said Rebecca excitedly.

"I don't think so," said Casey as they laughed. "But nice try."

"So did you ask her?" Ashleigh asked walking up to the two of them.

"Yes and she happily accepted," Rebecca replied.

"Yay!" Ashleigh exclaimed. "I love weddings!"

"Speaking of relationships, Ash," said Rebecca turning to her. "How is the apartment hunting going?"

"Uh, good," Ashleigh replied looking away.

Casey gasped.

"Ashleigh Howard," she said. "You haven't even been looking have you?"

"That's not true," Ashleigh replied. "I looked at one. But I didn't like it."

Rebecca and Casey both glared at her.

"What?!" said Ashleigh knowing just what her two best friends were thinking.

"I think you don't want to move out," said Rebecca. "That's why you're not trying to find a place."

"Well we're still sleeping in separate bedrooms," said Ashleigh.

Rebecca and Casey looked at each other and then turned to glare at Ashleigh again.

"Yeah right," Rebecca replied crossing her arms in front of her.

"Just admit that you like living with him," said Casey, a smile overcoming her face.

Ashleigh sighed, there was no point in trying to lie to Rebecca and Casey. They could see right through her.

"Yes, fine, I like living with him," she whispered. "Who doesn't like crawling in bed with a boy every night?"

Ashleigh looked over at Beaver who was holding Cadence in his arms. This time the baby wasn't crying, but Beaver looked like he almost was.

"He's just so nice and sweet," she continued. "And a great cook. He's always making dinner or whipping something up in the kitchen."

"Aw, I think somebody is falling in love," said Casey smiling at Ashleigh.

"I wouldn't go that far yet," said Ashleigh quickly. "But I do really like him."

All three girls looked at each other and smiled. It was nice to know that after everything, they were all good friends and would be there for each other through anything.

"I really love you two," said Casey putting her arms around both Ashleigh and Rebecca.

"And we love you too," said Ashleigh with a smile.

Everyone in the room mingled for another hour before people began to leave. Rebecca, Evan and Rusty all had to head back to CRU in the morning and Cappie's parents needed to get back to Kentucky. The nurses took Cadence to the nursery after everyone left so Cappie and Casey could enjoy one last night of peaceful sleep and they would soon find out how much they needed it.

* * *

**_A/N: So I'm glad that most of you liked the name I picked for the baby......I thought it was cute :0)_**

**_Off to Chapter 64........_**


	64. My Own Sweet Time

MY OWN SWEET TIME

Around two the next day Casey and Cadence were both discharged from the hospital to go home. Casey held Cadence in her arms as the nurse and Cappie wheeled her in a wheelchair to the car. Cappie opened the back door as Casey got up from the wheelchair and set Cadence in the car seat. The nurse helped her strap the baby in before heading back into the hospital. Casey sat in the backseat next to Cadence as Cappie climbed in the driver's seat.

"Are we all buckled and ready to go?" he asked.

"Sure are daddy," Casey replied buckling her seatbelt.

The drive home was a lot different than the way there. Cappie was being extra cautious with everything he did. He stopped at stop signs for several seconds looking both ways before going. And he didn't even go one mile over the speed limit on the highway. He knew as long as everyone made it home safe and sound things were going to be alright.

Cappie was able to relax as he finally pulled the Jeep into the garage. He quickly got out of the car and got Cadence out of the car seat.

"Are you able to get out?" he asked Casey as he cradled Cadence in his arms.

"I'm fine," said Casey as she climbed out of the car carrying her bags from the hospital.

Cappie opened the door and walked into the house.

"Here we are Cadence," he said making his way to the living room. "This is your home."

As he walked into the living room he saw a big sign above the fire place that said 'Welcome Home' and he immediately smiled.

"Look at what Evan and Rebecca did for us," he said as Casey walked in behind him.

"Aw, that's so sweet," she said setting the bags down on the kitchen table. "We've got some pretty great friends."

"So what should we do now?" asked Cappie as he sat down on the couch.

"Cadence hasn't eaten for a couple of hours," said Casey sitting next to him. "I should probably feed her."

Cappie handed the baby to his wife as Cadence happily latched on to her and began feeding.

"I can go get the pump if you want," said Cappie noticing Casey was in pain.

"No, it's OK for now," she replied. "I'll try it a little later."

Cappie leaned over and rested his head on Casey's shoulder as he watched his daughter eat. Casey then rested her head on top of Cappie's.

"I can't believe how tired I still feel," she said with a sigh.

"I would think that's understandable with all you went through yesterday," said Cappie.

The two of them continued to stare at Cadence.

"I can't wait to watch her grow up," Cappie finally said running his finger up and down her tiny arm. "I can't wait to show her the world."

"Me neither," Casey replied. "I think we'll make great parents."

A few minutes later Cadence was finished.

"Why don't you go lie down and take a nap," said Cappie taking Cadence from Casey. "I can watch her for a bit."

"Are you sure?" Casey asked.

"Positive," Cappie replied directing her upstairs. "I'll come and get you in a couple of hours if you aren't up yet."

Cappie watched Casey walk upstairs and returned to the living room. He set Cadence down in the swing and put it on the lowest setting so it would gently rock her back and forth. He then sat on the couch and turned on the TV. About a half an hour later Cappie was almost asleep himself when he was woken up by a very strong smell. He went over to Cadence and realized that it was coming from her.

"Of course you decide to take your first poop at home while mommy is sleeping," he said turning off the swing and picking her up.

Cappie took her up to her room and set her down on the changing table.

"OK," he said taking a deep breath. "Bear with me darling, I have to remember how to do this from the class your mommy and I took."

Cappie first got everything ready by getting the new diaper out and making sure the wipes were handy. He unsnapped the pink onesie Casey had dressed her to come home in, exposing the diaper.

"Oh man," said Cappie plugging his nose from the smell. "If you're going to do it you certainly know how to do it right."

Cadence just kicked her legs around like she had no clue what she was putting her daddy through currently. Cappie carefully undid the diaper flaps and reached for a wipe.

"One, two, three," he softly counted to himself right before he pulled the diaper down.

He grabbed her legs to pull her away from the dirty diaper.

"You got this all over the place," said Cappie as he began to use several wipes to clean her up.

Once she was clean Cappie wrapped up the dirty diaper and put it in the diaper pail next to the changing table.

"Alright, step one done," he said looking at Cadence who was now sucking her thumb staring up at him.

Cappie glanced to the table beside the changing table and saw several powders and creams sitting on it. He picked up one of the creams and one of the powders.

"Which one would you like?" he asked holding them up to Cadence.

Cadence of course did not offer any help to her dad.

"Well, since you have your right hand in your mouth let's go with the one on the right," Cappie said systematically putting the cream down and opening the powder.

He gently sprinkled the powder on her but quickly thought he probably had used a little too much since her bottom was now completely white. It looked like a blanket of snow.

"Oh well, you can never have too much right?" he asked her with a smile.

Cappie then grabbed the clean diaper and unfolded it.

"Uh oh," he said holding it up. "You don't happen to know which way this goes on do you?"

Cadence just continued to stare at him.

Cappie flipped the diaper around several times trying to remember which way it went.

"Don't these things like come with instructions or something?" he asked examining it.

Feeling defeated Cappie just put the diaper on her the best way he could. He snapped her onesie back up and picked her up off of the table.

"See, that wasn't so bad was it?" he asked her with a laugh.

But deep down Cappie was really proud of himself. Sure the diaper might be on the wrong way and he may have used too much powder but he still did it and without Casey's help. He went over and set Cadence down in her crib. A few seconds later Casey walked into the room.

"I heard some talking," she said stretching. "What's going on?"

"Oh I was just talking to the baby," said Cappie. "We had our first diaper changing experience."

"Oh you did?" Casey asked in a surprised tone as she walked over to Cappie.

"Yeah, and it wasn't so bad," Cappie replied. "I do have to warn you that the diaper might be on the wrong way and she may have just a little too much powder on her butt."

Casey just turned to Cappie and laughed.

"At least you tried," she said wrapping her arms around his waist. "I'll give you your grade the next time she needs to be changed."

Cappie wrapped his arms around Casey's shoulders and leaned down to give her a kiss. The two of them then turned on the baby monitor and hurried out of the room to let Cadence sleep.

* * *

**_A/N: So you know I had to write a scene with Cappie's first diaper change.....LoL. Let me know what you guys think._**

**_Coming up next chapter Casey and Cappie experience their first full day (and night) as parents :0)_**


	65. First Day

FIRST DAY

The rest of the evening went by smoothly. Casey was able to get some unpacking done while Cadence slept and Cappie did some work for the restaurant up in the office. Casey attempted to use the breast pump but didn't have much luck. She and Cappie had a lengthy discussion about breast feeding versus bottle feeding and even did some research on the computer. In the end they both decided to bottle feed Cadence which made Casey very happy to not have to go through anymore pain. Around dinner time Casey showed Cappie how to mix and heat up the formula for the baby so he could know how to do it if he needed to. Cadence happily took her first bottle before they put her to bed.

Around ten that night it was time for Cappie and Casey to climb into bed.

"You got the baby monitor on right?" Casey asked as she curled up next to Cappie.

"Yup," said Cappie glancing over just to check to see if it was on.

"Cap, have you thought about what you're going to do about work?" Casey asked.

"I talked it over with Beaver," Cappie replied. "He agrees that I need to be home to help you out with the baby for a few weeks. So I'm just going to stay here and work a little from home. There's always numbers to crunch and orders to place which I can just do from the computer here."

"I'm glad," said Casey squeezing him tightly. "It'll be nice to have an extra pair of hands to help."

The two of them fell asleep quickly. They knew they were going to be up several times during the night but didn't really have a plan. Cappie knew they would just figure it out as it happened. The first cries from Cadence came around twelve-thirty.

"I got it," said Casey getting out of bed and heading into the baby's room.

She picked up Cadence and began to rock her in her arms as she walked downstairs. Casey made up the bottle quickly and sat on the couch to feed her.

"There you go sweetheart," she said as Cadence began to suck on the bottle.

About twenty minutes later Cadence fell back asleep. Casey carried her up to her room and then climbed back into her own bed to fall asleep. It was less than an hour later that Cadence started to cry again. Cappie began to stir but Casey stopped him.

"Keep sleeping," she said. "I still haven't fallen back asleep from the last time she got me up."

"You sure?" Cappie asked softly as he watched Casey get out of the bed.

"Yeah," Casey muttered as she headed out of the room.

This time Cadence needed a diaper change. But changing the diaper didn't completely do the trick. She was still pretty fussy afterwards. So Casey sat in the rocking chair next to the crib and rocked Cadence back and forth for the next fifteen minutes. Casey returned her to her crib when she had fallen back asleep.

"Everything OK?" Cappie startled Casey as she got into bed.

"Yeah, just a diaper change," Casey yawned as she laid back down to go to sleep.

Cappie lifted his arm around Casey so she could snuggle up next to him. This time Casey was able to fall asleep quickly. Around four am Cadence woke both of them up with her crying.

"Cadence it's only been a couple of hours," grumbled Casey. "Go back to sleep."

"Oh she doesn't know any better," said Cappie sitting up on the side of the bed. "I'll go see what my little angel needs this time."

Casey didn't have to be told twice. She turned on her side and fell right back asleep. Cappie stretched as he stood up and headed over to the baby's room.

"Shhhh," he told Cadence as he picked her up. "Daddy's here. There's no reason to cry."

Cadence continued to wail as Cappie took her downstairs. He set her in her swing hoping it would calm her down while he made her a bottle. The swing did work briefly but Cappie knew she was too hungry to be distracted for long. He warmed up the bottle and picked Cadence up. He cradled her in his arms as he sat back in one of the recliner chairs. Cadence sucked down the bottle quickly.

"Man, you were a hungry girl," said Cappie setting the bottle on the end table next to him.

He leaned farther back in the recliner chair and put the leg rest up. He set Cadence right on his chest and wrapped his hands around her. Pretty soon both of them fell back asleep.

Casey began to stir in the bed. It took her a second to figure out what was going on. She was a mommy now. She looked at the clock: 8 am. She quickly shot up in the bed realizing she hadn't heard from Cadence for close to four hours. She then looked to the bed beside her to see it empty, no Cappie. She got out of bed and went into the baby's room to find it empty. She then hurried downstairs. She really did have confidence in Cappie to take care of Cadence, that wasn't the cause of her worry. She was more worried about Sudden Infant Death Syndrome or something like that happening to Cadence.

Casey turned the corner to look in the living room and was immediately stopped in her tracks. There was the cutest sight she had ever seen. Cappie was reclined in the chair sleeping with Cadence also sleeping soundly on his chest. Cappie's arms were wrapped around his daughter making sure she was nice and protected. Casey could feel a couple of tears form in the corner of her eyes. She went over to the cabinet and grabbed the camera. Her parents took some pictures in the hospital but she hadn't started with any yet. She turned on the camera hoping not to make too much noise and snapped the picture of the two of them. Casey set the camera down and went into the kitchen to prepare a bottle for Cadence. She would surely be starving when she woke up.

The sound of the microwave caused Cappie to stir. It also took him a second to realize what was going on. But it wasn't hard for him to remember as he felt his six pound daughter on his chest. He opened his eyes to see Casey walking around the kitchen.

"I think I found her new favorite place to sleep," said Cappie startling Casey when she heard his voice.

"I know," said Casey walking over to him with the bottle. "I was completely freaked out when I woke up four hours after the last time she woke me up. I thought something was wrong."

"Nothing wrong," said Cappie rubbing Cadence's back. "Just sleep time with daddy."

"Well I hate to wake her up," said Casey. "But she's way over due for a bottle."

Cappie gently scooped up Cadence in his hands and handed her to Casey. Cadence immediately woke up when she was in Casey's arms and began to fuss.

"It's OK," said Casey to her. "Mommy's got your bottle right here."

Casey sat on the couch and began feeding the baby as Cappie sat up in the recliner.

"So what do you think we should do today?" he asked her as he rubbed his eyes.

"There's not a whole lot we can do," said Casey giving him a strange look.

"Sure we can," said Cappie. "We could take another car ride or we could take her on her first walk in the stroller."

"A walk sounds nice," said Casey with a nod. "But a little later, I want it to warm up a bit first."

The first full day with their daughter was quite taxing on the couple. Even though she slept a lot she also needed several feedings and diaper changes. Cappie and Casey seemed to have a good system down and helped each other out as best as they could. After lunch they put Cadence in the stroller and took her around the block for a walk. It was nice to get out and the baby seemed to enjoy it as she didn't cry until after they got home. Getting through the first day was an important milestone for the new parents. It assured them that they could do it and give the baby everything she needed.

* * *

**_A/N: So this was a shorter chapter but I could totally see a scene like this happening and had to write about cute Cappie/baby interaction :0) I'll post chapter 66 since this one was so short._**


	66. In The City

IN THE CITY

The next month was pretty rough for Casey and Cappie. Sleep during the night was a thing of the past. Cadence had either one of them up every two to three hours for feedings. During the day she wasn't too bad though, giving Cappie and Casey time to take naps right along with her. Cappie started back to work last week and even though it was only a couple days a week, Casey noticed quite a difference. She tried to be the one to get up during the night with Cadence the nights before Cappie had to work so he could get a decent amount of sleep. She also missed him when he was gone during the day. Between the baby, dishes, laundry and cleaning she barely found any time to herself.

It was the first Saturday in November. Cappie had the day off and did as much as he could with Cadence to give Casey a little bit of a break. All he had to do was look at her and could tell she was worn out. She wasn't anywhere near the perky Casey anymore. He could tell she needed more of a break and a little time to get out of the house. So he called Casey's parents and they were more than happy to watch Cadence while Cappie took Casey out to dinner tonight.

Cappie set Cadence in her crib and went to go find Casey. He found her observing herself in the mirror in their room. He came up from behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist.

"It's amazing how much easier my hands go around you without the baby in there," he whispered into her ear.

He saw Casey smile in the mirror.

"I still can't get rid of some of this baby weight though," she said rubbing her stomach.

"It'll come," Cappie replied. "And if even if it doesn't come off I still think my wife is the more gorgeous person in the world and that's all that matters."

Casey turned around and kissed Cappie on the lips.

"Thanks honey," she said backing away. "That really means a lot to me."

"Well it's the truth," Cappie said squeezing her a little tighter.

"Is Cadence sleeping?" Casey asked.

"Yeah, I put her in her crib," Cappie replied.

Casey rested her head on Cappie's chest as he rubbed her back.

"I think you need a little outside the house break," said Cappie.

"What do you mean?" Casey asked backing away to look at him.

"I called your parents today," said Cappie. "And they said they would babysit tonight so I could take you out to dinner."

Casey backed completely away from Cappie and went to go sit on the edge of the bed.

"Uh, was it something I said?" Cappie asked confused with Casey's reaction.

"Cap, I'm not sure if I'm ready to leave her yet," said Casey.

"Case, we're going to be leaving her with your parents," said Cappie walking over to sit next to her. "It's not like it's with some sixteen year old babysitter. She's going to be fine."

"But what if they can't get her to stop crying," said Casey. "You and I are the only ones she's ever really known. She could be scared with strange people."

"These aren't strange people," said Cappie realizing how irrational Casey was being. "They are her grandparents and she's going to have to get to know them someday."

Casey took a deep breath.

"I know," she said softly.

"Come on honey, let me take you out," said Cappie putting his arm around her. "I promise we can check in regularly with your parents if that will make you feel better."

"OK, you win," said Casey turning to him and smiling. "I guess I have been pretty cooped up in this house for the past month."

"Great," said Cappie standing up. "I will go and get some things packed for Cadence while you get ready."

With that Cappie leaned down and gave Casey a kiss on the cheek and went out of the room. About an hour later they were ready to leave. Cappie and Casey dropped Cadence off at the Cartwright's and were off to dinner.

"It's kind of weird saying goodbye to your own child," said Casey as they backed out of the driveway.

"Yeah but she knows we'll be back," said Cappie. "I think you told her like fifty times."

"Hey, just wanted to be sure she knew," Casey replied smiling.

About twenty minutes later Cappie pulled into Antonio's, a small Italian restaurant he was able to make reservations at. He figured if Casey had to stand and wait for a table she may give up and want to go home. So he made the reservation making sure she couldn't back out. Cappie grabbed Casey's hands across the table after they had given their orders to the waitress.

"Thanks for coming out with me tonight," he said smiling at her. "I know you didn't want to but I think it's good to get out every now and then."

"I wonder how Cadence is doing," was all Casey replied.

Cappie glared at her.

"Can we maybe not talk about the baby for like five minutes?" he asked. "I want us to focus on us tonight."

"Why? Is there something wrong with us?" asked Casey becoming a little worried.

"No, not at all," Cappie assured her. "We just haven't had a lot of time lately for just us and now that we do I want to make sure we make the most of it."

"So how are things going at work?" Casey asked trying her best to push Cadence to the back of her mind and show Cappie she could focus of them.

"They are still going really well," he replied. "Business has slowed down just a little but that is to be expected. We're sure it will pick back up around the holidays with everyone out shopping."

"That's true," said Casey taking a sip of her drink. "And how are Beaver and Ashleigh? I feel so bad I haven't talked to Ashleigh in a couple of weeks."

"They are fine," Cappie replied. "She's really all Beaver ever talks about. He's head over heels for that girl."

"Aw, that's cute," said Casey. "I hope they get married and have a little Beaver running around someday."

Cappie just laughed at Casey's last remark. There was a brief silence between the two of them. Cappie caught Casey several times looking at her phone lying on the table.

"Do you want to call and check in?" he asked grudgingly.

"If you don't mind," Casey replied.

Cappie just nodded his head as Casey picked up the phone to call her parent's house. He could hear her mom on the other end scolding Casey for calling which made him smile. At least someone else was on his side.

"She's fine," said Casey as she set her phone back down.

"I heard," Cappie replied.

Soon their meals came and the two of them ate mostly in silence. Casey glanced up at Cappie several times. She could tell he had a disappointed look on his face. She really didn't mean to be feeling like this. There was just something about being a mother now that changed her. Her daughter was all she could think about but she knew deep down that she needed to be thinking about her husband too. Cappie has been nothing short of amazing to her. And he was really trying to bring that spark back between the two of them with this dinner. She instantly felt bad and tried to think of a way to fix things.

Cappie paid for the meal and the two of them walked out of the restaurant and towards the car. Casey grabbed Cappie's hand.

"I'm in no rush to get back," she said. "Let's go for a little walk around town."

Cappie turned to look at her, surprise written all over his face. But he wasn't going to argue with Casey. All he really wanted was to spend some time with her. The two of them began walking hand in hand down the street looking in the windows of the little shops next to them.

"Look at that lamp," said Casey looking in one of the windows. "That would look really nice in the office wouldn't it?"

"Yeah, it would," Cappie replied as they stopped to look in the window. "I believe this is the place I bought our dining room table at. Your mom introduced me to the place."

"Mom does have good taste," said Casey as they turned to continue walking down the street.

The two of them continued to walk in silence back to the car. Cappie went over to open the car door for Casey when she surprised him by pushing his back against the car. She looked up at him with the sexiest eyes he had ever seen.

"What is that look for?" he asked smiling.

"I just wanted to tell you that I love you," she said wrapping her arms around his neck. "And that you are the most amazing father and husband a girl could ever have. I know I've been pretty worn out and distant lately but I don't want it to affect us."

"Well I love you too Mrs. Cappington," said Cappie. "And really that's all I needed to hear. I understand that being around the baby a lot can make you fatigued and tired. But just saying those three little words still makes my heart flutter every time I hear them come out of your mouth."

Casey pulled Cappie's head close to hers and began to passionately kiss him.

"I also want to let you know," she said backing away. "That you still drive me absolutely crazy. Your touch, your kisses, it's like feeling each of them the first time all over again and again."

"And I feel the same about you my love," said Cappie pulling her close to him. "But are you trying to tell me you want to have sex in not so many words?"

Cappie raised his eyebrows at Casey as she smiled.

"Not quite yet," she said crushing his hopes. "I'm still a little sore. But soon though, I promise."

"You know I'm always ready," said Cappie kissing her. "So when you are, just let me know."

"I will," she said passionately kissing him again. "Don't you worry."

The two of them made out next the car for a few minutes. Cappie finally backed away.

"OK, anymore of this and I'm not going to be able to stop," he said with a small laugh.

"I really do love you so much," said Casey staring deep in his eyes.

"I love you too," Cappie replied bending down and giving her a soft kiss on the lips.

He opened the door for her and went around to the other side to get in. They picked up Cadence who was sound asleep and drove home. Even though they didn't make love that night Cappie was pleased with how the night went. He was finally able to feel the closeness of his wife that he had missed the past couple of weeks. Overall the date night was a success and they planned on making it a regular thing between the two of them over the next few months. As important as Cadence was to them, this night made them remember how important they are to each other and that a little time to themselves is needed just once in a while.

* * *

**_A/N: So nothing crazy or too exciting in the two chapters today......but I promise you I have some drama up my sleeve in the next several chapters so stay tuned :0)_**


	67. Watch Over Me

WATCH OVER ME

It was two am a couple of days later. Casey was in the nursery holding Cadence. In fact, she had been there for pretty much the whole night. Almost nothing would calm her down. Casey tried giving her a bottle but she didn't want to eat, she checked her diaper numerous times which was dry and put her in a variety of positions. But nothing really calmed Cadence down. Casey was becoming nervous. Usually Cadence was a wonderful baby and cried at most for twenty minutes. She was always easy to calm down.

Casey tried not to wake Cappie up because she knew he had to work later in the morning but she was plain out of options. Maybe daddy could help calm her down. Cappie sat up in bed as Casey brought crying Cadence into their bedroom.

"I was wondering when you were going to come," he said looking at Casey.

"I'm sorry honey," said Casey walking over to him. "She just won't stop fussing. I've tried everything."

She handed Cadence to Cappie and he rested her against his chest. After a few minutes Cadence still continued to cry.

"I give up," mumbled Casey as she sat on the bed next to Cappie. "She just won't stop crying tonight."

Cappie put his hand on Cadence's forehead.

"Have you checked her temperature?" Cappie asked. "I think she might have a fever."

"No, she didn't feel hot to me," Casey replied putting her hand on Cadence's forehead.

"She does to me," said Cappie getting out of the bed and heading to the nursery.

Casey followed and found the baby thermometer someone had purchased for them, still in the box. She took it out and turned it on.

"It says we have to insert it rectally," said Casey reading the instructions.

"Lovely," mumbled Cappie as he undressed his daughter to prepare her.

Cappie held her down as Casey inserted the thermometer. Cadence just wailed even louder once she put it in. It beeped after about a minute.

"One hundred and one!" Casey shouted as she read the numbers. "Oh my god! How did I miss this?"

"Calm down," said Cappie putting the diaper back on Cadence. "What do you think we should do?"

"Uhhh," Casey said trying to think. "I guess we take her to the hospital?"

"I'd hate to have her in a scary hospital when she really only has a cold," said Cappie. "Why don't we call the pediatrician first?"

"Good idea," said Casey as she ran to get the phone.

Cappie was sitting in the rocking chair holding Cadence when she entered the nursery a couple minutes later still on the phone.

"OK, OK, will do," she said into the phone. "Bye."

"Well?" Cappie asked as she hung up the phone.

"Dr. Pavlovich wants us to take her to the hospital," she said looking like she was about to cry. "She said it's the safest to rule in or rule out some sort of infection."

"Oh man, OK," said Cappie taking a deep breath. "You grab the diaper bag and I'll load her into the car."

In minutes the family was loaded in the car and off to the hospital. Cappie was having a little bit of déjà vu at the moment. His right foot was the same lead foot that wanted to speed the whole way to the hospital when Casey had gone into labor. He tried his hardest not to speed but this situation was a little different. His daughter needed to be looked at now.

Cappie dropped Casey and Cadence off at the emergency room door and went to park the car. He didn't even have to ask the secretary where his wife and daughter were when he walked in. He heard the mind-numbing cries of his daughter and followed the sound. Eventually he found them in one of the exam rooms. Casey was sitting close to the crib which held Cadence, looking helpless as ever.

"Well? What's going on?" he asked entering the room.

"Nothing yet," said Casey stroking Cadence's head. "The nurse said she would be back in a few minutes."

Cappie began to pace around the room. He always found himself pacing when something in his life was stressful. It was his way of coping with things. A few minutes later a nurse came in to take Cadence's vital signs. Her temperature now was one hundred one point seven.

"That's higher than when we took it a while ago," said Casey in a worried tone.

The nurse didn't reply. She just put on her stethoscope and listened to her heartbeat and lungs.

"When is the last time she's eaten?" the nurse asked.

"I would say somewhere around eleven or midnight," Casey replied. "I tried feeding her when she kept crying but she wouldn't take the bottle."

"We're probably going to have to start an IV in her then," said the nurse. "She's at risk for becoming dehydrated. I'm going to go and get the supplies."

Cappie turned to Casey as the nurse left. He could tell she was really fighting back the tears.

"Hey," he said walking over to her. "We don't even know what is going on right now. Let's stay strong for Cadence OK?"

"OK," said Casey nodding her head, fighting as hard as she could to keep the tears from falling.

The nurse came back into the room with an assistant.

"I'm going to need you to step away for a second mom while we put this in," she said.

Casey got up and went over by Cappie who put his arm around her. They both watched in horror as their daughter continued to cry and scream as they put the IV in. At one point Casey buried her head in Cappie's shoulder because she couldn't bear to look.

"While we're here we're also going to draw some blood to run some tests," the nurse said.

Casey cringed as she watched her daughter go through the pain of yet another needle being placed in her skin.

"I really hope this is the last one," said Casey shooting a worried look to Cappie.

He just rubbed her arm up and down trying to stay as calm as possible. Cadence became even more distraught with the second needle that went into her arm. Cappie cringed. He never thought he would hear his daughter cry like that. It was almost painful for him to hear.

"The on call pediatrician should be in shortly," said the nurse as she gathered up her supplies and headed out of the room.

Cappie immediately let go of Casey and went over to comfort his daughter.

"It's OK sweetheart," he said, almost crying himself. "All the bad needles are over for now. Daddy's not going to let anyone else hurt you."

Cappie picked Cadence up as she continued to cry and leaned back in the rocking chair they had in the room. He began to rock the chair back and forth as Cadence rested on his chest. The next thing he knew he was softly humming some sort of nursery rhyme to himself but he didn't care. Whatever he was doing seemed to calm his daughter down a bit and that is all that mattered.

The doctor finally made it in about a half an hour later.

"Hello I'm Dr. Chadsey," he said shaking Cappie and Casey's hands. "I understand little Cadence isn't feeling so well. When did things first start?"

"She's been crying pretty much non-stop since midnight," said Casey. "I tried to give her a bottle numerous times but she wouldn't take it. My husband finally suggested she may have a fever and when we saw it was one hundred and one we call our pediatrician who suggested we come here."

"Has she had any other symptoms?" the doctor asked. "Cough, runny nose, diarrhea?"

"Not that I know of," Casey replied. "Maybe a cough occasionally but nothing I was worried about."

Instantly Casey felt like a horrible mother. Here it was Cappie that noticed she had a fever and now she may have missed an important sign she was getting sick by thinking the cough wasn't anything to be concerned with.

"Let me take a listen," said Dr. Chadsey as he took his small stethoscope and listened to the back of Cadence's lungs while she still rested on Cappie.

"I hear some fluid in her lungs," he said backing away. "This makes me think we're dealing with some pneumonia and I would like to get a chest x-ray to confirm."

"OK, whatever you have to do doctor," said Cappie.

"We'll start with that," he said. "I'll have to nurse take her to x-ray while I take a look at the blood work and update you once I have all of the results."

"Thanks doctor," said Cappie as he walked out of the room.

Moments later two nurses came in to take Cadence to get her x-ray. It was heartbreaking for Cappie to give her away. As soon as she left his arms she began to cry again.

"It's OK, we'll get you back to daddy as soon as we can," said the nurse taking Cadence out of the room.

Casey turned to Cappie.

"How on earth would she have gotten pneumonia?" she asked. "We've been so careful."

"Babies have weak immune systems," Cappie replied. "All it took was one bacteria to get her sick. We haven't done anything wrong."

"I just feel so out of control," said Casey. "I've spent all night trying to comfort her and now here we are at the mercy of these nurses and doctors to make sure our daughter is OK. Cap, what if she's not OK? What if something is really wrong?"

"Hey, hey," said Cappie bringing Casey into his arms. "We are not going to think like that. She may not even have pneumonia. It was just a guess by the doctor."

"Yeah but babies just don't have fluid in their lungs for no reason," said Casey. "There has to be something wrong."

"And they'll figure it out," said Cappie, always the voice of reason in the relationship.

They two of them sat in silence holding each other until the nurse brought Cadence back into the room. The nurse handed her back to Cappie who again rested her on his chest. Cappie began to stroke her back up and down to again try to calm her down. This time took a little longer but he was able to get her to rest. Cappie had almost fallen asleep himself when the doctor walked back into the room. He took the x-ray out and put it on the light in the room.

"See all this white on the bottom of her lungs?" he asked pointing to the x-ray. "Well that's a sure fire diagnosis of pneumonia."

Casey sank further in her chair with the doctor's words.

"We're going to have to admit her for some IV antibiotics," the doctor continued. "I'm still waiting on the blood work at this time but we really need to get her started on something before her lungs get worse."

"What would we do if they got worse?" asked Cappie wondering why he had even asked such a horrifying question.

"Then she would probably have to go on a ventilator," the doctor replied. "It's good you brought her here tonight. Babies don't fight infection as well as adults and older children do. They are liable to go downhill pretty fast and the hospital is the best place for her to be. I'm going to go get her a bed in the neonatal ICU. The nurse will be in to take you guys up when it's ready."

"Oh Cadence," said Casey turning and stroking her daughter's hair. "I'm so sorry."

Casey buried her head deep into Cappie's upper arm trying with everything she had not to cry. She felt so guilty. She felt it was her fault her daughter had to endure something like this.

Cappie was the opposite of Casey. He was speechless and sat still trying to stay as calm as he could. Deep down he wanted to let tears fall also. But with his daughter laying right on top of him he needed to remain strong. She didn't need to hear him cry. He needed to stay strong for both of his girls.

* * *

**_A/N: So sad news.....only one chapter tonight :0( I feel like this story has lost some of its popularity and because of that I've lost my motivation to write.......I'm hoping I can get it back with some encouraging reviews after tonight's posting but we'll have to see. Thanks for any input you guys have._**


	68. Watershed

WATERSHED

Cadence we settled into the ICU about an hour later. Cappie and Casey weren't allowed in the room at first so the ICU doctors could look at her and get her hooked up to all kinds of monitors. Once they were allowed in they didn't leave their daughter's side for the rest of the night. The nurses helped Casey attempt to feed Cadence at one point but she would not take the bottle. Casey even tried breastfeeding again but after one or two sucks Cadence stopped and began crying again. Her cry killed Casey every time she heard it. She knew her daughter was in some sort of distress and the only way she knew how to tell anyone was crying.

It was now around eight in the morning. Cappie and Casey hadn't slept at all. Cadence had a couple of scary situations during the night where he heart rate dropped causing all the nurses to come running. But she recovered quickly and the nurses didn't think too much of it. Hearing the buzzers go off was gut-wrenching to the new parents. Obviously the sound wouldn't be there if there was nothing to be concerned about.

Casey looked over at Cappie who looked like he was exhausted. He had worked all day the day before. He had large bags under his eyes and his hair was all over the place. At one point Casey had tried to tame it a little bit with her hand but no such luck.

"Do you hear that?" Cappie asked shaking Casey out of her thoughts.

"What?" Casey asked.

Cappie stood up and put his ear near Cadence.

"It sounds like she's starting to wheeze," he said.

Casey also put her head close to Cadence. At first she didn't hear it but eventually she noticed the soft pitch wheezing coming from her daughter. Cappie nervously called the nurse over.

"She's starting to wheeze," he told her.

The nurse took her stethoscope and listened to Cadence's lungs.

"Oh my," she said.

"What oh my?" Casey asked trying to control herself.

The nurse didn't answer. She took a mask off of the shelf behind the bed and put it on Cadence.

"What is going on?" Cappie asked.

"I'm going to call the doctor in," said the nurse. "I think her lungs are getting worse."

"This can't be happening," said Casey as she leaned against Cappie. "Her breathing was fine just an hour ago."

"You heard the doctor," said Cappie. "Babies can take a turn for the worst very quickly. At least she's in the best possible place she can be in."

Moments later the doctor along with two other nurses came rushing up to Cadence. The doctor began to listen to her lungs and take her oxygen levels.

"She's not passing oxygen very well," they heard the doctor say. "Her stats are only at eighty-four percent, they're supposed to be above ninety"

The doctor completed a few more things on Cadence and then turned to Cappie and Casey.

"I'm sorry to have to tell you this," he said softly. "But it looks like she's going to need to go on to the ventilator."

Cappie's heart sunk down to the floor. His baby, on a ventilator? It just didn't seem real. He looked up at the doctor, who was waiting for him to respond.

"Whatever you have to do," Cappie said softly.

"OK," said the doctor. "I'm going to need you two to wait in the waiting area while we do this. We're going to have to sedate her."

"Can we see her before you do this?" Cappie asked.

"Quickly," said the doctor standing off to the side. "We really need to get this started."

Cappie grabbed Casey's hand and they walked up to their daughter. Her face was hard to see under the big mask they had on her but Cappie could still see her eyes. They were filled with tears. She looked so scared. And he could really hear her struggling for air now. Cappie blinked his own tears out of his eyes as he bent down to kiss her softly on the cheek.

"We love you very much Cadence," he said to her. "Mommy and I will be back as soon as we can. You're a strong girl. You hang in there."

Cappie backed away so Casey could go in and give her a kiss.

"We love you Cadence," she said as the two of them backed away.

As they made their way to the waiting room they could hear the doctor calling out several orders to the nurses in a frantic tone. They knew that this was not a going to be a good situation.

Once in the waiting room, their roles were surprisingly reversed. Cappie was the one who immediately sat in one of the chairs and began to sob. Casey sat next to him and rubbed his back. She found a box of tissues on the table beside her and gave one to Cappie. He sat back in the chair and wiped his eyes.

"We are not losing our little girl," he said before he started crying again.

"No, we're not," Casey tried to assure him. "Cadence is a fighter. She's going to overcome this."

Cappie was a hard man to calm down when it came to his daughter. Even though she had only been in this world for a month, she was already daddy's little girl. Daddy is the one who is supposed to protect her from all the bad things in the world. And in that case, Cappie felt like he had failed. He was helpless as he watched his little girl fight to breathe. He began to stand up and start to pace again. He only got a few laps completed before Casey stood in his tracks to stop him.

"Pacing is not going to get us anywhere," she said as she looked up into Cappie's bloodshot eyes and grabbed his shoulders. "Please stop."

Cappie leaned his forehead against Casey's as tears streamed down his face.

"I don't know what else to do," he said becoming choked up. "I feel so helpless."

"Well we're not helpless," said Casey. "As parents we just need to be there for our daughter. We need to hold her hand, kiss her, touch her. She needs to know that we are there because we're the two people in this world she knows the best. She needs us."

"I know," said Cappie trying to take a deep breath.

He backed away from Casey and sat back down in the chair.

"I'm going to call my mom," said Casey. "To tell her what's going on."

Casey pulled out her cell phone and dialed her parent's number. Her mom answered the phone cheerfully but that quickly changed once Casey told her what was going on. She assured Casey she would be at the hospital as fast as she could.

"Should you call and let Beaver know you won't be at work?" asked Casey as she hung up with her mom.

"Yeah," said Cappie taking the phone from Casey.

He dialed Beaver's apartment and Ashleigh answered.

"Hi Casey," she answered the phone.

"No, it's Cap," he said with a sniffle.

"Oh my god what's wrong?" Ashleigh asked noticing Cappie was crying.

"Cadence," said Cappie. "She's really sick. Could you let Beaver know I'm not going to be into work today."

"Yeah, hold on," said Ashleigh as she told Beaver.

Beaver immediately got on the phone.

"Cap, are you OK?" he asked.

"Barely hanging by a thread," Cappie responded solemnly.

"Well you know you can take all the time you need," said Beaver. "What is going on?"

"She's got a pretty bad case of pneumonia," Cappie replied. "Case and I have been here since around two this morning. They are putting her on a ventilator as we speak."

"Call me if either of you need anything," said Beaver. "Ash and I will be up there later today."

"Thanks Beave," Cappie replied.

He hung up the phone with Beaver just as the doctor walked into the waiting area. Cappie and Casey immediately stood up.

"Please, sit down," the doctor stated.

Cappie and Casey gave each other worried looks as they sat back in their chairs.

"She's sedated and on the ventilator now," said the doctor. "I want to let you guys know exactly what is going on. When I ran her blood work earlier this morning things were pretty inconclusive. She had an elevated white blood cell count which is normal with infection but everything else looked to be within the normal limits."

He looked at the couple making sure they understood what he was saying.

"When Cadence got worse I ran her blood work again and found out that she is septic," he continued with a sigh.

"What is septic?" Cappie asked.

"Basically it means the infection has travelled into her blood," said the doctor. "What started out as a bacterial pneumonia has spread throughout her body."

"That doesn't sound good," said Casey as tears escaped her eyes.

"It's not," the doctor replied. "We've got her on heavy doses of antibiotics right now to try and beat this. But there are some cases where the infection is just too much for the little body to fight."

"No, don't tell me this," said Casey as she latched onto Cappie. "Don't tell me that my baby is going to die."

"I'm not telling you she's going to die," the doctor replied. "I'm just letting you know that it is a very real possibility."

Cappie began to breathe hard trying to control his emotions. He wanted to get up and start pacing so badly but he couldn't with Casey latched onto his arm.

"You may go back in to see her whenever you guys are ready," said the doctor sensing Cappie and Casey had nothing left to respond to him.

He quietly left the room.

"I feel like my world is crashing down before my eyes," said Casey through her tears.

All Cappie could do it put his arms around Casey. He wanted to tell her that everything was going to be alright. But who was he kidding? Everything wasn't going to be alright. His daughter was fighting for her life at this moment and there wasn't a damn thing he could do about it.

"Come on," said Cappie as he broke away from Casey. "Our daughter needs us in there."

* * *

**_A/N: So you guys are truly the GREATEST and gave me a kick in the motivation department yesterday. It was so nice to see that there are still people reading! I don't expect everyone to review every chapter but if you could once in a while just to let me know what you think and that you're still reading I would really appreciate it :0)_**

**_Only one chapter for now because I have to head out for some shopping. But I do have another to post possibly later today depending on when I get back._**

**_Thanks again for all the input and advice, especially from nevermind and Rose Aarc._**


	69. Never Let Go

NEVER LET GO

When going back in the room the first thing Cappie and Casey had to do was put on gowns and masks. The doctors wanted to reduce the probability of Cadence getting more infection as best as they could. Seeing Cadence on the ventilator was an awful sight. She was completely motionless, her eyes were closed and she had several tubes and lines all over her body. Casey wanted to pick her up and hold her so badly. But the nurses told her she wasn't allowed to as they didn't want any of her tubes and wires messed up. Her legs were the only part of her body that didn't have some sort of medical equipment attached to it. So Cappie made a point to rub his hand up and down her leg as much as he could, to let her know he was there. Daddy was always going to be there.

Around twenty minutes later Casey's mom gently tapped on the ICU glass to get their attention.

"I'll go see her," said Casey to Cappie as she stood up and walked towards the door.

"Oh my god Casey, gowns? Masks? What is going on?" asked Mrs. Cartwright as Casey walked out.

Casey didn't even have the strength to respond. She ran right into her mother's arms and began to cry.

"Oh Casey," said her mom stroking the back of her head.

Mrs. Cartwright looked through the ICU windows while she hugged Casey. Cappie had turned around to look at them. He looked like he had been crying for hours. Casey's mom knew that the situation was not good. She pulled Casey away from her and looked her right in the eyes.

"Case, please, calm down and tell me what is going on," she said.

Casey took a few deep breaths to try and calm herself down.

"The doctor," she said slowly. "He told us, he told us that the infection is, is everywhere. It's in her blood."

"How did this happen?" asked Mrs. Cartwright starting to get choked up herself.

"We don't know," said Casey shaking her head.

Casey's mom wrapped her arms around her daughter again.

"Is there anything you need sweetheart?" she asked.

"Yeah, some sleep," said Casey backing away from her.

"Well I can stay with Cadence while you and Cap lay down in the waiting area," she said. "I don't mind."

"No, it's best if the two of us stay with our daughter right now," Casey replied. "I really need to get back in there."

"Is there anyone else I can call?" asked Mrs. Cartwright. "To let them know what's going on."

"I guess Cappie's parents," said Casey. "But maybe we should wait until we know something more since lord knows where they are at the moment."

"Just let me know," Mrs. Cartwright replied. "I'm here to assist you two with whatever you need."

"Thanks mom," said Casey putting her mask back on. "I'll catch up with you a little later."

Mrs. Cartwright peered through the glass and watched Casey walk back to her daughter. She sat next to Cappie and he put his arm around her. They just sat there and stared at Cadence, each completely terrified of what was going to happen.

The rest of the morning, along with the afternoon came and passed quickly. There was no change with Cadence. The doctors explained to Cappie and Casey that it would be pretty much a waiting game from here on out. They needed to give time for the antibiotics to do their job. In another few hours they were going to draw her blood again to see if some of the infection had gone away.

Around six that night the nurse came walking up to Cappie and Casey. They hadn't left Cadence's side since Casey saw her mom that morning. They were both exhausted mentally and physically.

"We're going to change her diaper and do some suctioning of her lungs," said the nurse. "Why don't you two go and get some coffee or something?"

"I really don't want to leave her side," said Cappie.

"Come on Cap," said Casey taking his hand. "We have to let the nurses do their job. It'll be good for us to go for a little walk. Cadence is in good hands."

Cappie turned to Casey and regrettably stood up. He bent down to give Cadence a kiss on the cheek and the two of them left the ICU. Once outside Cappie tore off his mask and gown and threw them in the garbage.

"Why us Case?" he asked leaning against the wall. "Why did this have to happen to us?"

"I can't answer that question," said Casey standing in front of him and putting her hands on his chest.

"It just sucks," said Cappie putting his hands around Casey's waist.

"You're doing wonderful though," said Casey trying to reassure Cappie.

"I don't know how much longer I can remain strong," said Cappie. "I'm already fighting with everything I have."

"I know," Casey replied. "But when I gave birth to her I realized that we all have some strength deep down inside us hiding for the moments we need it. It helped me deliver her and I know it's going to help us stay strong through this."

Cappie took a deep breath and ran his hand through his hair.

"Come on," said Casey. "Let's go get a cup of coffee or something. We haven't eaten or drank anything all day."

The two of them walked slowly to the waiting room. Several people stood when they walked in.

"Any news?" asked Ashleigh.

"No," said Casey shaking her head. "Everything is still the same."

Ashleigh ran up and gave her best friend a hug.

"I'm so sorry Case," she said. "If there is anything I can do, let me know."

"Just you being here helps," said Casey as she squeezed her best friend a little tighter.

"You two really need to get some sleep," said Mr. Cartwright coming up to the couple. "I know you want to be there for Cadence but you two can't kill yourselves in the process."

"I know dad," said Casey backing away from Ashleigh.

"There's a room with a bed for parents who need to stay the night right over there," said Mrs. Cartwright pointing to the other side of the room. "Let me and your dad or Ashleigh and Beaver stay with Cadence while you two take a nap. It doesn't have to be a very long one. Just an hour. Please."

Casey looked at Cappie who just shrugged his shoulders.

"Fine," said Casey. "But for no more than an hour. They are going to be running more blood tests soon and I want to be awake for those."

Mrs. Cartwright nodded.

"And you guys know you have to put the masks and gowns on when you go in," said Cappie. "And really we've only been touching her legs because everything else has wires and tubes on her."

"We'll be fine dad," said Mrs. Cartwright. "Now please, go in there and get some sleep."

The couple slowly went into the room and shut the door. There was a recliner chair and one twin size bed in the room. Cappie immediately laid down in the bed pulling Casey down next to him. He wrapped his arms tightly around her as she faced him.

"What are we going to do?" Casey asked as tears began to stream down her face.

"There's not much we can do," said Cappie sadly. "It's really up to the doctors, Cadence and God right now. They're the ones with the knowledge and the power to change things."

"It's just so hard," said Casey snuggling closer to Cappie. "We went from being the ones who have complete control over Cadence to having no control at all."

"I know," said Cappie shutting his eyes. "But I guess as parents this is something we have to learn to do."

"I don't really feel like I'm a great parent at the moment," mumbled Casey.

"You are a wonderful mother," said Cappie opening his eyes to look at Casey. "You've done everything just perfect. Don't beat yourself up over this. You didn't do anything wrong."

"But there's always that thought in my mind," said Casey. "What if I didn't wash one of the bottles out good enough, what if I didn't bundle her up good enough when we went for a walk, what if I let someone who was sick touch her, what—"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," said Cappie interrupting her. "Stop talking like that. This is no one's fault. Now the sooner we get to sleep the sooner we can be back out there with Cadence."

"OK," said Casey shutting her eyes. "Goodnight Cap. I love you."

"I love you too honey," said Cappie as he squeezed her a little tighter.

Cappie noticed it didn't take long for Casey to fall asleep. She became limper and limper in his arms by the second. Cappie was the one who had a hard time falling asleep. He let tears roll down his face slowly. After everything Casey and he had been through, there was no way Cadence was going to die. That little girl has been his entire life since Casey broke the news to him about being pregnant. She's all he's thought about since she was born. Just the day before he ran around the restaurant with a huge smile on his face thinking about his daughter. He showed her picture to anyone who wanted to see. He was so proud of her. He thought about her big hazel eyes looking up at him. She always got the widest eyes every time she saw him. She knew he was her daddy. She knows how much he cares about her. That thought alone eventually helped ease some of the pain he was feeling. No matter what that little girl was his daughter and he would do just about anything for her. God's not ready to take her from him. Cappie has never been one to be very religious but as he began to fall asleep he found himself silently saying a prayer to God. He was begging and pleading him to not take his daughter from him. Cappie feared his own life would be over if that happened.

* * *

**_A/N: Thanks for the continued reviews everyone._**

**_And to erogers, thanks for the comment.....I'm actually a physical therapist so I've got a pretty good grasp on the medical field. Writing stuff like this is so easy for me.....I think I wrote all of these chapters with the hospitalization in like a couple of hours....LoL!_**


	70. Bridges of Stone

BRIDGES OF STONE

Casey woke up and looked at her watch. It was eight o'clock. She angrily took a deep breath realizing she had slept an hour more than she had planned to and no one bothered to wake her up. She softly ran her hands through Cappie's hair to wake him up.

"What time is it?" he asked letting go of her and stretching her arms.

"Around eight," Casey replied. "Of course no one came to wake us up. I told them I didn't want to sleep any more than an hour."

"Hey, I look at it this way," said Cappie sitting up. "It's a good thing no one came and got us because that means nothing bad has happened to Cadence."

"I guess you're right," said Casey also sitting up.

Cappie stood up off the bed and reached for Casey's hand. He pulled her into standing and close to him.

"We're rested now," he said. "Let's use some of this new energy to stay strong OK?"

"OK," Casey replied.

She looked up into Cappie's eyes. Instantly he leaned down and kissed her on the lips. Casey savored the entire moment. Feeling his lips on hers was something familiar to her. And with all these new events happening it was so nice to feel something familiar. She hoped Cappie felt the same way.

"God I needed that," he said backing away from her.

"Me too," Casey smiled knowing that he did feel the same way.

The two of them walked arm in arm out of the room to find Mr. and Mrs. Cartwright sitting in the waiting room.

"We're sorry we didn't wake you up," Mrs. Cartwright said. "I actually did go into the room after an hour. But you two just looked so peaceful and there really wasn't anything happening that I just decided to let you sleep. I hope you're not too mad."

"I was at first," Casey replied. "But now I'm OK."

"How have things been going with Cadence?" Cappie asked.

"Nothing new," Mrs. Cartwright replied. "Ashleigh and Beaver are in there with her now. We've been taking shifts in and out. I believe they took her blood about twenty minutes ago and sent it to the lab to be analyzed."

"Thanks for being here mom and dad," said Casey. "Cap and I probably wouldn't have gotten any sleep if it wasn't for you guys."

"We're always here for you Case," her dad replied.

Cappie and Casey headed out to the ICU. They donned their gowns and masks and walked over towards Ashleigh, Beaver and Cadence.

"You guys are up," said Ashleigh standing to hug Casey. "How was the nap?"

"Very much needed," Cappie replied. "Thanks so much for being here guys. We couldn't have two better best friends."

"Anytime man," said Beaver giving Cappie a hug.

"We'll head out and let you two be with her now," said Ashleigh. "Let us know if anything changes."

"We will," said Casey as Ashleigh and Beaver walked out of the door.

"Hey little girl," said Cappie rubbing Cadence's leg. "Mommy and I had to take a little nap. But we're back now. You had some real good visitors while we were gone though."

The two of them sat there with Cadence for the next forty minutes. Cappie never took his hand off of her. He wanted to make sure she knew he was still there and was always going to be there. The doctor approached them with a paper in his hand.

"I've got some good news mom and dad," he said.

Their faces lit up. They hadn't heard any good news in hours.

"The bacteria levels in her blood are starting to go down," the doctor continued. "Now it's not a huge drop but the drop does indicate that the antibiotics are starting to work and hopefully we can get her through this."

"Thank you doctor, that's great news," said Casey.

"What is the plan now?" Cappie asked.

"I'll check her blood again in the morning," said the doctor. "If the levels continue to go down I would like to try and wean her from the ventilator in the next couple of days. But that all depends on how she does going back to breathing on her own."

"How long do you think she's going to be here in the hospital?" Cappie asked.

"At least another week," the doctor replied. "Probably more. We need to keep her on the IV antibiotics until we have a good handle on the infection. Then we can switch to some oral ones."

"OK, thanks doctor," said Cappie as the doctor nodded his head and walked away.

"I guess I should go and tell everyone that they can leave," said Casey standing up. "There's no point in them staying here if there is nothing to be done until tomorrow morning."

"True," Cappie replied. "I hope it's OK that I stay here though."

"Yeah, I'll be back in a little bit," said Casey as she walked towards the door.

She got to the waiting room and told the four guests that the bacterial levels in Cadence's blood had gone down and that there wasn't much of anything left to do until the morning.

"Are you and Cappie going to be alright by yourselves?" asked Ashleigh. "Because I can call off work tomorrow and stay here with you guys if you want."

"No, you don't have to do that," Casey replied. "The doctor said Cadence is going to be in the hospital for a while even if she starts getting better. There's nothing we can do right now."

"What are you and Cap going to do?" asked Beaver. "You can't stay in the hospital for days."

"I'm not sure," Casey replied. "I don't see Cap leaving her side anytime soon though. We'll just have to see what happens."

"Well you call us if anything changes," said her mom coming up to her.

"We will mom, promise," Casey replied giving her a hug.

Casey watched the four of them put their coats on and slowly leave the waiting room. She put her mask back on and headed back into the ICU.

"Did they leave?" Cappie asked.

"Yeah, they are on their way out right now," Casey replied sitting next to him.

The two of them sat next to Cadence for the next hour. They talked to her, sang to her and touched her so she knew that they were there for her. Eventually Cappie turned to Casey.

"So what do you think we should do?" Cappie asked.

Casey looked at him and shrugged her shoulders.

"A part of me wants to stay here all night again," continued Cappie. "But another part of me thinks we should go home and get some sleep."

"I hate to leave her alone though," Casey replied.

"I know, that's what makes this decision so hard," Cappie replied.

The two of them sat in silence for a bit, listening to the beep of Cadence's heartbeat on the monitor by her bed.

"I guess we don't live very far from the hospital here," Casey finally said. "If she needed us we could be here in less than ten minutes with your driving."

"Shoot, less than five depending on if something was really wrong," said Cappie with a small smile.

"So I think we've agreed we should go home," said Casey.

Cappie turned to look at her. He knew she was right. He would probably go crazy just sitting here all night waiting for something good or bad to happen to his daughter. He saw a nurse walk by and flagged her down.

"Do you happen to know what time in the morning they were looking to draw her labs?" Cappie asked.

"The lab technician usually comes around seven," the nurse replied.

"OK, well, I think my wife and I have decided to go home for the night," he told the nurse.

"That's probably a good idea," the nurse replied. "We have all of your numbers on file and we'll call you if anything changes."

"And we'll be back early in the morning," Cappie added.

"I'll let everyone know," said the nurse as she walked off to the nurse's desk.

Cappie and Casey stood up and put their hands on Cadence.

"Sleep tight Cadence," said Casey. "Mommy and daddy are going to go home and get some rest. But we'll be back early in the morning to check on you. Promise."

"I love you Cadence," said Cappie leaning down to give her a kiss. "Don't do anything crazy while your mother and I are gone."

The two of them turned and walked slowly out of the ICU. They took their gowns off and threw them in the cans next to the door. Once the door shut behind them they both turned around and looked at Cadence one last time through the glass. It was the hardest thing to have to leave her but they both knew they had to do it for themselves. They both would have gone crazy if they stayed in the hospital for the rest of the night.

* * *

**_A/N: Sorry for the few chapters full of suspense......things start to get better soon, don't worry :0)_**

**_So did you like having two chapters again? I'll try to keep doing two as much as I can. I'm hoping this weekend I can get a lot of writing done since I fell behind a little bit. As always, any motivation helps!_**


	71. Dying to be Alive

DYING TO BE ALIVE

On the way home they stopped for a light dinner at Arby's. Neither of them felt much like eating but knew they had to get something in their stomachs to keep up what little strength they had left in them. Once they got home they went straight to bed. There weren't too many words exchanged between the two of them. They both realized the sooner they went to bed the more sleep they got and the more rested they would be for Cadence in the morning.

Cappie woke up around four-thirty and realized Casey wasn't in bed with him. He got out of bed and checked the bathroom but she wasn't in there. He then saw the light on in the nursery and knew that was where Casey was. He opened the door to find her sitting in the rocking chair. She had one of Cadence's blankets wrapped tightly in her arms and she was crying.

"Case?" he asked as he walked in the room. "What's going on?"

Casey looked up at him with her tear stained face.

"I just miss her so much," said Casey. "I'm just so used to being up with her every couple of hours that my body kept waking me up. I didn't even need to hear her cry. It was like my motherly instincts just knew."

Cappie went over and sat on the ottoman in front of her.

"So when I woke up for the fourth time I realized I couldn't take it anymore and I came in here," she continued. "Seeing the empty room made me get all emotional."

"Why didn't you wake me up?" Cappie asked rubbing her leg.

"You needed sleep," Casey replied. "Plus there was nothing you could do."

"I could have drove you to the hospital to see her if that's what you really wanted," he replied.

"I thought about that," Casey replied. "But I knew it wasn't going to change anything. I would probably be sitting in a chair next to her for hours gripping her baby blanket like I am here tonight."

Cappie reached up and wiped the tears off of her face.

"Come on," he said. "Let's go back to bed for a little bit. At least try to get another hour or two of sleep."

"I'll try," Casey replied as she stood up and followed Cappie back into their room.

They both climbed into bed and cuddled near each other. Cappie stayed awake making sure that Casey was able to fall sleep. He noticed her breathing had become more rhythmical and she had fallen back asleep. He finally was able to relax next to her and fall back asleep himself.

The alarm went off about two hours later waking them both up from a deep sleep. Cappie reached over and turned it off as Casey began to wake next to him.

"Glad to see you were able to get some sleep finally," said Cappie as he noticed Casey had opened her eyes.

"Yeah, it made me feel really good too," she said sitting up and stretching.

"I guess it's time for us to head off to the hospital," said Cappie as he sat up.

"Yeah, but let's grab some coffee on the way," said Casey.

The two of them showered and dressed quickly. They ran through the Starbucks drivethru for some coffee and were back at the hospital before they knew it. They donned the gowns and masks and headed on into the ICU.

"Well hello mom and dad," said the nurse tending to Cadence as they came in.

"How is she?" asked Cappie.

"She's doing fine," the nurse replied. "They just came and drew her blood a little while ago so we should know the results shortly."

"So nothing really happened overnight?" Casey asked.

"No, nothing at all," the nurse insisted.

Cappie and Casey approached Cadence and put their hands on her.

"Good morning sweetheart," said Casey. "Mommy and daddy are back to see you."

The couple sat with Cadence for the next couple of hours waiting anxiously for the doctor to come by. Finally Dr. Pavlovich, their pediatrician, came into the ICU.

"Hello Mr. and Mrs. Cappington," she said shaking their hands. "Sorry I wasn't able to make it in to see Cadence yesterday. But the doctor on call kept me updated."

"So do you have her new lab results?" Casey asked as the doctor listened to Cadence's lungs.

"Yes, and it's good news," the doctor said when she finished listening. "Her counts went down again. And her lungs sound much better. Hopefully we'll be able to get that tube out of her in the next couple of days. I'm going to order another x-ray to see how the fluid is in her lungs."

"OK," said Cappie softly.

"And how are you two holding up?" she asked looking at Cappie and Casey.

"We're hanging in there," Casey replied. "I'll feel a lot better once she's off the breathing machine."

"I think we all will," the doctor replied.

The doctor checked some of Cadence's reflexes and then finished her exam.

"I'll be around all weekend," she said. "Have the nurses page me if you two need anything or there is a change with Cadence OK?"

"OK thanks doctor," said Casey as the doctor walked over to the nurse's station.

* * *

Three days had passed and Cadence was still not off of the ventilator. Even though her levels continued to improve their pediatrician, Dr. Pavlovich, and the house doctor, Dr. Chadsey, had differing opinions as to when Cadence was ready to come off of the breathing machine. But on this day they finally both agreed that she was ready. Unfortunately, Cappie and Casey had to go out of the ICU for the procedure. They were able to look through the glass window but they couldn't see much as there were too many nurses and doctors standing around. Casey clenched onto Cappie as hard as she could. She was nervous something would possibly go wrong or maybe that Cadence wasn't ready yet.

About a half an hour later the doctor let them back into the room.

"Everything went very well," he said. "Cadence still has some sedation medicine in her so she's probably going to be sleepy for a while. But she is breathing on her own now."

Cappie and Casey ran up to Cadence, each of them eager to finally see their daughter without the tube down her throat. Once they saw her a huge weight felt like it had been lifted off their shoulders. Cadence was sleeping but she was still making little twitches with her arms and legs which neither of them had seen in days since she was sedated. Casey noticed she was making a sucking-like motion with her lips.

"Is she going to be able to start feeding now?" Casey asked the doctor.

"Probably in the next couple of days," Dr. Chadsey replied. "We don't want to initiate feeding too quickly. We have her on nutrition through her IV so she should be OK."

"OK," said Casey as she turned back to her daughter. She couldn't wait until she was ready to start feeding again.

Cadence became more and more awake over the next few hours. She began kicking her legs around and opening her eyes. Cappie happened to be staring right at her the first time she opened her eyes.

"Hey sweetheart," he said looking right into her eyes. "It's so good to see your eyes."

Cadence just brought her fingers to her mouth and began chewing in response to her dad.

"You and those hands in your mouth," said Cappie playfully as he took his hand to pull them out.

As he brought her hand back down to her side Cappie felt her hand wrap around his finger.

"Case," said Cappie. "Look."

Casey stood up to see what Cappie wanted.

"She's grabbing my finger," he said. "I know it's probably just a reflex but it just feels so good. To be able to feel my daughter move again. This is just wonderful."

"It is, isn't it?" said Casey as she leaned against Cappie and stared down at Cadence.

* * *

**_A/N: So only one chapter for now.....the next one is longer and if I'm able to get some more writing done today I may post it later. If not, it will be up tomorrow :0)_**


	72. High On You

HIGH ON YOU

The next week went by quickly for the Cappington family. Cadence was now taking her bottles regularly and they transferred her out of the ICU and into the regular neonatal wing. It became easier for Cappie and Casey to stay with their daughter during the day and leave her a night. Now that she was doing better they found themselves worrying less.

Cadence was finally cleared to go home the day before Thanksgiving. She was on a strict regimen of antibiotic medicine to make sure the infection completely went away. Cappie and Casey couldn't be happier. Having their daughter bundled up in the back of their Jeep going home was something they honestly thought they may never get to do at one point. But their daughter was certainly a fighter. Even the doctors said babies with this infection usually stay in the hospital for another week. But Cadence was a special baby and her parents knew it.

Originally the plan was for everyone to gather at the Cartwright house for Thanksgiving dinner. But Cappie insisted Cadence stay at home and out of the cold as much as possible for the next few weeks. So Thanksgiving was changed to their house. Since Casey didn't have much time to cook they made the occasion more of a potluck with everyone bringing a dish and Cappie taking care of the turkey.

Casey walked downstairs on Thanksgiving holding Cadence. She put her in her swing and snuck up behind her husband who was taking the turkey out of the oven. She wrapped her arms around his waist and laid her head against his back.

"You do realize I have a very hot turkey in my hands," he said.

Casey let go as he put the turkey on the stove and took off the oven mitts.

"Now," he said turning around and closing the oven door with his foot. "As you were."

Casey smiled as she wrapped her arms around Cappie as he did the same to her. It felt so good to be in her husband's arms. Even though the two of them went through hell the past two weeks, she felt like it made their relationship stronger. Casey unhooked her arms around his neck and brought his face down to hers for a passionate kiss. Cappie deepened the kiss as he ran his arms up and down her waist and the small of her back. They both broke away when they heard Cadence gurgle in the living room.

"Do you think that was a 'mom and dad please stop' gurgle or a 'my parents are so in love and I love them' gurgle?" Cappie asked with a smile.

"I'd like to think it was option number two," said Casey as she again brought his lips down to hers.

The two of them stood there making out until the ring of the doorbell interrupted them.

"Hmmmm," Casey moaned as she backed away from Cappie. "Maybe we'll have to continue this later tonight."

"No complaints from me," he replied as he let her go and returned to the turkey.

Casey opened the front door for Ashleigh and Beaver.

"Whew, it is so cold out there," said Ashleigh taking her coat off.

"Yeah, no kidding," Casey replied as she hung their jackets in the closet.

Ashleigh gave Casey a hug when she was finished.

"I would give you a hug," said Beaver with a smile. "But my hands are a little full."

"Oh just go set that on the counter," Casey replied realizing Beaver was holding some sort of casserole.

He went over and put it down and turned to Casey to give her a hug.

"That's better," he said backing away from her. "Now where's my BFF?"

"Cappie's in the kitchen," Casey replied.

Beaver went up to Cappie and almost tackled him.

"I feel like I haven't seen you in forever," he said.

"I know," Cappie replied. "How are things going with the business? I'm sorry I've been MIA recently."

"Hey, I told you that wasn't a big deal," said Beaver. "Besides, the restaurant is booming. I expect a huge day tomorrow with all the people shopping."

"Do we have enough staff?" Cappie asked.

"You just let me handle it," replied Beaver.

Cappie just shrugged his shoulders as Beaver made his way over towards Cadence.

"There's my girl," he said. "Case, can I pick her up?"

"Of course," Casey replied from her spot at the kitchen table.

Beaver picked up Cadence and sat on the couch just as the doorbell rang again. Casey hopped up to answer it.

"Mom, dad!" she exclaimed. "Come on in."

The Cartwrights made their way into the home having Casey hang up their jackets much like she did for Ashleigh and Beaver.

Cappie went to the fridge and got out some appetizers for everyone to munch on before the meal was ready. Casey looked at the clock. It was time for Cadence to have her Thanksgiving dinner. She warmed up a bottle and went over to Beaver who was still holding her.

"You want to feed her?" Casey asked.

"Uh, I've never done anything like that before," Beaver replied becoming a little nervous.

Casey smiled as she showed him how to feed Cadence. Luckily for Beaver Cadence was hungry and took the bottle right away. Beaver looked down at Cadence and smiled at her the entire time she was taking the bottle. Casey thought about how gentle Beaver was with Cadence and how much of a great father he will be one day. She then looked over at Ashleigh who was staring at Beaver feeding Cadence. Casey smiled and realized the two of them would make some pretty beautiful babies in the future. _Not quite as beautiful as Cappie and I though,_ she thought to herself. She loved her best friends and was so lucky to have such great ones.

Casey was shaken from her thoughts with another ring of the doorbell.

"Rusty! Jordan!" exclaimed Casey as she answered the door. "I'm so glad you guys could make it."

"Us poor college students would never miss a free meal," said Rusty with a smile as he gave his sister a kiss on the cheek.

Casey hugged Jordan and they made their way into the living room and kitchen to greet everyone else.

Everyone mingled and passed around Cadence for the next hour. Casey was so wrapped up with everything she didn't realize Cappie had left the room. She looked around for him and realized he must have gone upstairs. She made sure Cadence was taken care of and went up to find him.

"Cap?" she asked as she walked into their room.

She then noticed he was on the phone and went silently to sit by him on the bed.

"OK, love you too, bye," said Cappie as he hung up the phone.

"I couldn't find you," said Casey looking at him. "I was worried."

"I just came up here to call my parents," said Cappie.

"Are they OK?" Casey asked.

"Yeah, they're fine. Just another Thanksgiving without them," Cappie said with a sigh.

Casey gave him a confused look.

"I talked to them yesterday evening," explained Cappie. "They told me they were planning on coming to Thanksgiving. But as you can see, they aren't coming."

Cappie threw the phone down on the bed in disgust.

"I'm sorry sweetheart," said Casey wrapping her arm around him.

"It's just depressing," said Cappie standing up and pushing his hair back with his hand. "I thought I was really beginning to form a relationship with my parents. I thought things were going to be different."

Casey didn't know what to respond.

"I know they really don't celebrate Thanksgiving," continued Cappie. "But I thought they would at least want to come and see their granddaughter. They haven't even seen her since she was born. I just thought she was more important to them than this."

"Well maybe they have a good reason," said Casey. "Maybe they are like in Arizona or something."

Cappie turned and looked at Casey with sad eyes.

"They're in Ohio," he sighed as he sat back down on the bed next to her. "And feel that a rally against after Thanksgiving shopping in Cleveland is more important than making the trip here to be with us."

Casey wrapped her arms back around Cappie. This time he leaned into her and rested his head on hers.

"Come on," said Casey standing up. "It's Thanksgiving and we have a lot of friends and family down there who want to be here with us. Isn't that all that matters?"

"That's true," said Cappie allowing Casey to grab his hand and pull him into standing.

The two of them walked hand in hand back downstairs and joined the party. Soon the food was ready and everyone began to eat. Cadence fell asleep in her swing allowing everyone to peacefully enjoy their meals.

Everyone had some coffee and chatted after dinner was done. Cappie was especially content sitting around and enjoying time with some of the most important people in his life. He held Cadence in his arms and gave her the last bottle before Casey would put her to bed. He really found it amazing to be in the presence of this new family he had really grown accustomed to. Sure, there is no one like his parents but all the people in his home that day really cared about him. He looked over at Casey and smiled. He felt so lucky to have her in his life. She was certainly the perfect hostess making sure everyone had just what they wanted. The way she walked from the living room to the kitchen with such happiness certainly rubbed off on him. There was just something about her that was truly special to him. She was his everything. _Oh, and Cadence too _he thought to himself as Cadence gurgled to him like she was reading his thoughts.

Ashleigh and Beaver were the last people to leave around ten that evening. Casey finished washing the last couple of coffee mugs in the sink before heading up to bed. She stopped in the doorway of the nursery and watched Cappie put Cadence to bed. He had always been so gentle with her. He changed her diaper and put her in a new onesie to sleep in. He picked her up and kissed her on the cheek several times before lying her down in the crib. Then he leaned against the railing of the crib and stared at her for several minutes. He didn't say anything but occasionally reached down to stroke her cheek.

"I love you Cadence," he said as he kissed his hand and placed it on the side of her cheek.

Cappie turned around to head out of the room and was surprised to see Casey standing there staring at him.

"What was that stare for?" he asked as they walked out of the nursery and shut the door.

"I was just admiring how wonderful of a father you are," Casey replied.

Cappie smiled as the two of them headed into their room. Casey changed into her pajamas while Cappie stripped down to his boxers and got into bed. Casey soon joined him and rested her head into the nook of his arm.

"You know," she said softly. "I think we both have a lot to be thankful for today."

"That's true," replied Cappie.

"What are you most thankful for?" Casey asked turning her head to look up at Cappie.

"I have two things," Cappie said with a smile. "I'm first thankful for my beautiful daughter and that we have her home and safe. I can't believe we almost lost her. She truly is a fighter."

"She sure is," Casey replied. "So what's the other thing?"

"You," said Cappie as he moved Casey so she was face to face with him. "You know you complete me in a way that no one else in this world can do. All I have to do is look at you and a smile comes over my face. I'm not sure what I ever did to deserve you. But I'm thankful that I did whatever I did do. Because you are truly amazing and I'm never going to let you go."

Casey opened her mouth to respond. She wanted to tell Cappie the same thing. She wanted to let him know how thankful she was for him. But he didn't let her. He leaned forward and began kissing her with a forcefulness she hadn't felt in months. It certainly wasn't aggressive. It was a kiss full of love, deep, passionate love. She kissed him back with the same forcefulness as he reached his hands underneath her shirt, softly caressing her bare skin. Casey quickly sat up and took her shirt off. She straddled him leaning as close as she could, making sure he felt her bare breasts against his muscular chest. She softly kissed his lips and then slowly moved to nibble on his earlobe.

Cappie ran his hands all over her slim body as she attacked his earlobe. He suddenly couldn't take it anymore and wanted all of her. He pushed her off of him, making her lay on her back on the other side of the bed. He quickly took off the rest of her clothes, admiring her naked form. He then removed his own boxers before positioning himself on top of her.

"I love you Casey," he said softly as he looked deep into her eyes.

Casey didn't need to say that she loved him too. She wanted to show him instead. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him close against her, kissing him deeply. Cappie tried to come up for air after a while but Casey continued to hold him against her, wanting to feel every part of their bare skin touching each other.

Cappie was finally able to break free from her grasp and catch his breath. But he didn't rest long. In one big swoop he was inside her, feeling completely connected to each other, they were one. He smiled on the inside knowing that this time it was just the two of them. He didn't have to worry about if he was going to hurt the baby or lay on Casey too much. Casey could tell this is what he was thinking as he was more forceful with his thrusts than he had with previous encounters. She didn't mind his increased enthusiasm at all. In fact, it just turned her on even more.

Cappie was beginning to sweat and his breathing increased, almost panting. Casey knew he was about to go but she didn't want it that way. She wanted to please him, let him know that he was her everything also. So she quickly pushed him off of her. The hurt and shock was written all over his face. But she quickly wiped those looks off his face as she slammed him against the bed and straddled him. Once again, they fit together perfectly. He put his hands around her now tiny waist as she pleased him with everything she had.

Casey could feel his grip getting tighter on her waist. She braced her hands on his chest knowing she was about to experience the same feeling he was. As Cappie let out of soft moan Casey leaned down and nibbled on his earlobe yet again, making the feeling even more enjoyable for him. He wrapped his arms tightly around her as he was finished. He moved her so they were both on their sides, but still wrapped up with each other in a tangle of limbs.

"Nobody makes me feel the way you do Mrs. Cappington," said Cappie softly kissing Casey on the lips once the haze of sex had cleared from his head.

Casey just smiled as she softly kissed Cappie on the cheek and snuggled close to him. They each instantly fell asleep but were each awakened a couple hours later by their daughter. Casey began to break away from Cappie when he stopped her.

"You stay here," he said softly. "I'll take care of her."

Casey watched as her handsome husband found his boxers somewhere on the ground and put them on clumsily. He smiled at her as he walked out of their bedroom. He was only slightly disappointed he had to leave their naked embrace. He smiled at Cadence as he walked up to her crib. It was his way of thanking her for giving her mommy and daddy enough peaceful time to reconnect. It was just what they needed.

* * *

**_A/N: Sooooo what did you guys think??? Another love making scene :0) Hope you guys liked it!_**

**_The next chapter will be Christmas time which is pretty appropriate given that Christmas is this week. And the next chapter is totally cute C/C interaction with some reflection to the past.....I really like the chapter and hope you guys will too. It will be up tomorrow as usual._**

**_Also wanted to let everyone know that I'm working on a little surprise Christmas present for all my readers.....my goal is to get it up Christmas Eve but we'll have to see if I get it done by then (I should if all goes well). Get excited!_**


	73. Christmas Time

CHRISTMAS TIME

The holiday season was always Cappie's favorite time of the year. Going to CRU really made him appreciate the holiday season so much more. There was something about the cold and snow on the ground that really defined the season. Growing up in California and moving all over the west coast, he rarely saw snow. It wasn't until freshman year at CRU when he saw his first, true snow. And he'll never forget that moment because it was a very special moment between him and Casey.

He woke up that morning in his small dorm room with her in his arms. The room was dark with the curtains covering the windows. It was a Saturday so they didn't have anything to really get up for and Evan had gone home for the weekend. Casey eventually woke and looked out the window. It was blinding when she moved the curtains because everything was so bright. It was like someone had taken a white blanket and laid it over the ground overnight. There had to have been at least three to four inches on the ground. Casey had seen snow before so it wasn't a huge deal for her. But Cappie's excitement soon rubbed off on her and they were both outside throwing snowballs at each other and making snow angels, laughing the entire time. At one point Cappie tackled her onto the ground. He'll never forget that moment and how beautiful she looked with her red nose and the snowflakes piled in her hair. It was at that moment he told her for the first time that he loved her. Casey didn't even have to think of a reply. Without hesitation she told him she loved him too.

So maybe that was why this time of year was so special to Cappie, especially this year. Freshman year he had his girl and everything was perfect. But he spent the next three holidays pretty much alone at the Kappa Tau house because not even his parents would be around for him at home. He didn't mind staying at the Kappa Tau house. There was always a brother popping in to stay a couple nights. The only night he was ever truly alone was Christmas Eve. Everyone was with their families and friends but he was alone.

But this year was so much different. This year he had his own family. He had his girl back and an added bonus, his daughter. He knew that from this Christmas forward he was never going to spend it alone and the feeling brought him so much content and happiness it was hard to put into words.

On Christmas Eve the two of them put Cadence to bed and started a fire in the fireplace. They sat in front of it talking and cuddling under a blanket for hours. Eventually Cadence disturbed them needing to eat but he didn't mind. It was one more way for him to feel needed this holiday, to feel like he wasn't alone. Falling asleep with Casey in his arms later that night was almost surreal for him. He even pinched himself a couple of times to make sure he wasn't dreaming. But each time he woke she was there, her blond hair tickling the side of his neck and her breath leaving a warm spot on his chest.

Christmas morning Cappie woke up with a smile on his face. It was his first Christmas as a husband, and as a father. Unfortunately the bed was empty and this left him slightly disappointed. He sat up and rubbed his eyes, not ready to get out of bed yet. Thankfully he didn't have to because in walked his wife, carrying their daughter.

"Oh look, daddy's awake," said Casey walking over to the bed.

"I was worried you left me," said Cappie as he pulled his wife and daughter close to him.

"We'd never leave you," said Casey smiling at him.

"I know," Cappie replied leaning in and giving Casey a kiss.

Cappie reached out his arms and Casey passed Cadence to him.

"Merry first Christmas," Cappie said looking down at her. "I'm sure Santa was very good to you."

Cadence just looked up at Cappie and smiled. It was certainly something he had become accustomed to over the past couple of weeks. He'll never forget the first time she smiled at him. He was holding her in his arms and told a joke to Beaver. He looked down at her as he laughed at his joke and she looked right up at him and smiled back. He was lucky she didn't know what she was smiling about because it was quite a dirty joke he shared with Beaver. But nonetheless it was the first time he saw her smile. And it was beautiful.

"And Merry first Christmas to you my wife," said Cappie turning to Casey. "I love you so much."

"I love you too," Casey replied. "And I know how much this Christmas means to you sweetheart. I hope it's everything you dreamed of."

"It's already lived up to my dreams," said Cappie. "I'm laying here in bed with my two favorite ladies. It really doesn't get any better than this."

Casey leaned in and kissed Cappie.

"We should probably start getting ready though," said Casey. "Mom wanted us at their house by eleven to open presents before lunch."

"Oh, OK," Cappie playfully mumbled. "Has Cadence eaten yet this morning?"

"No, not yet," Casey replied.

"Well I'll go feed her while you take a shower," he said.

Casey smiled as she climbed out of bed and went into the bathroom. Cappie got into the shower after Cadence was fed and Casey was finished. Casey dressed Cadence in a cute red velvet dress and matching headband she had bought for her to wear today. Cappie loaded presents in the Jeep and the three of them were off to the Cartwright home.

Casey's parents, Rusty, Jordan and the Cappingtons spent an intimate hour opening presents around the Christmas tree. Cadence made out with the most presents even though she had no idea what was really going on. At one point Cappie took one of the red bows off of a present and stuck it to Cadence's head. She looked very cute and very in the Christmas spirit.

Mrs. Cartwright and Casey made their way into the kitchen after they were done with the presents. Several aunts and uncles and family friends were coming over for lunch and they needed to prepare the food. Cappie fed Cadence and put her in the portable crib to sleep. She had been such a great baby for the day. She rarely fussed and was just the happiest baby she could be.

Before the guests arrived Cappie pulled Casey aside.

"Are you done with the cooking?" he asked her.

"Yeah," she replied. "Mom's just putting on the final touches."

"Well since we have twenty minutes or so before everyone comes," he said looking at his watch. "I don't suppose I can interest you in playing in the snow with me?"

"Are you serious?" Casey asked with a smile.

"Of course," Cappie replied. "Come on, we can get Rusty and Jordan to join us."

Cappie went into the living room and persuaded Rusty and Jordan to come with them. Everyone bundled up in coats, gloves, boots and hats and headed outside. They first began making a snowman. It started off as a group effort but Rusty and Jordan ended up getting in a snowball fight leaving Cappie and Casey to finish it on their own. They stood back and admired their work after it was finished. It wasn't the best snowman in the world. It was a little lopsided and the head was the same size as the body but they didn't care. They had fun.

Casey was about the turn to Cappie and comment on their snowy friend when something very cold hit the side of her face. It took her a second to realize what was happening but Cappie laughing behind her was all she needed to hear to know he had started a snowball fight with her. She reached down and balled up some snow and threw it back at him, hitting the back of his coat. Soon the two of them were in an all out war chasing after each other and throwing countless snowballs.

At one point Casey began to run from a massive snowball Cappie had made and was running after her with. She really was no match for him. He caught up to her quickly. But instead of throwing the snowball at her, he tackled her to the ground. She began to squirm underneath him trying to get free at first. But soon she realized he wasn't playfully trying to hold her down. She stopped as she looked up into his eyes staring deep into hers.

"Something wrong honey?" she asked.

Cappie smiled.

"You remember the last time we laid like this in the snow?" he asked.

Now it was Casey's turn to smile.

"Yeah," she nodded her head. "It's when you first told me that you loved me."

Cappie reached up to brush her hair off the side of her face.

"Case, did you know from that day forward I dreamt about our future almost every night?" Cappie asked.

"No, I didn't," Casey replied softly.

"I did," said Cappie. "I dreamed about how I would lavalier you. I dreamed about how I would pin you. I dreamed about how I would propose to you. I even dreamed about our wedding. I had never said those three words to a girl before you and I certainly don't use them loosely."

"I know Cap," said Casey. "But why are you telling me this now? We're already married and living happily ever after."

Cappie smiled.

"I dreamed about lavaliering you in the snow just like this," Cappie continued. "I knew how special it would be since it's the first place we really declared our love and the possibility of a future together."

Cappie took a deep breath and reached into his pocket.

"I know we agreed we wouldn't get each other anything for Christmas," he said. "But I couldn't help but thinking how we sort of did things out of order with our relationship this time. So that being said, I was wondering…."

Cappie opened the small box revealing his Kappa Tau Gamma letters.

"Would you wear my letters?" he finally asked.

Casey looked down at the letters. They were much different than the letters Cappie probably would have given her freshman year. These letters were covered in diamonds. And they were beautiful.

"Cap," said Casey looking up at him. "I would love to wear your letters."

Cappie leaned down and kissed Casey passionately. They both sat up as he backed away. Casey lifted up her hair as Cappie took his gloves off to put the necklace around Casey's neck.

"It's beautiful," he said admiring her. "Everything I dreamed of."

"Cap, I feel bad for not getting you anything," said Casey as she touched the letters on her neck.

"Don't worry about it," Cappie replied. "This is something I wanted to do."

Cappie stood up and pulled Casey also up to standing. He wrapped his arms around her waist as Casey wrapped her arms around his neck.

"Merry Christmas," she said standing up on her tip toes and kissing him.

"Merry Christmas love," Cappie replied kissing her back.

* * *

**_A/N: Happy Holidays everyone! I can't believe this chapter ended up being posted this week. I honestly didn't even plan for it to happen that way....LoL! Hope you guys liked it!_**

**_Oh and my surprise for everyone is coming along very well and let me tell you, it's getting waaayyyy much longer than I had intended it to be! I didn't think you guys would mind though :0)_**


	74. Lonely Boy

**_Just a little A/N to start things off.....I made Jordan in this story still together with Rusty. None of that stuff with her going to New York happened. She's still at CRU and with ZBZ. OK, time to read on :0)_**

LONELY BOY

Cadence was six months old on April 2nd, 2011. She was now almost sleeping through the entire night and up most of the day except for a much needed afternoon nap. She was able to sit up on her own and mastered the art of rolling. She also started eating infant cereal instead of her regular bottles for some meals.

Cappie was fully back at work. He consistently went into the restaurant about four days a week to balance the books and handle some business things. He really enjoyed his job and working with Beaver continued to work out well. The restaurant was one of the top ones in town and the boys were very proud of that.

Casey spent most of her days home with the baby. At one point she explained to Cappie that she felt like she needed some sort of job. So Cappie and Beaver put their heads together and put Casey in charge of quality assurance with the restaurant. So one to two days a week she would go into the restaurant while Cappie stayed with Cadence to work. She loved it. She got to mingle with the customers and find out what they liked or disliked about the restaurant and how things could be improved.

The weekend of April 2nd was a special one for Casey. It was the weekend all Greek alumnae were invited back to the CRU campus to visit their houses and see their sisters and brothers. Casey, Cappie and Cadence all piled into the Jeep Friday morning and headed to CRU.

Ashleigh and Beaver followed close behind in Beaver's car. Things were going just as well for the two of them. Ashleigh never found an apartment to move to and was still staying with Beaver. Casey came to the conclusion that she never really planned on moving out in the first place.

"Cap can you speed it up just a little?" asked Casey as they got off at the CRU exit. "The ZBZ alumnae dinner starts at six and I don't want to be late."

"You'll be fine," said Cappie squeezing her leg.

They pulled up in front of the ZBZ house just minutes before six.

"Are you sure you're OK with taking Cadence with you?" Casey asked. "It really won't be a problem taking her to the dinner. She's really a good baby."

"She is a good baby," Cappie replied. "But I want to take her to the KT house."

"Somehow I don't see forty Kappa Tau brothers welcoming a baby so well into that house," said Casey as she stepped out of the car.

"Don't worry about it. Everything will be fine," Cappie replied.

"Come on Case we need to get in there," said Ashleigh walking up to their car.

"You heard the woman," said Cappie. "Now stop worrying about me and Cadence and enjoy your little dinner. You guys can probably meet me and Beaver at the KT house when you're done."

"Alright," Casey replied. "She's due for a bottle in about an hour so make sure she gets it."

"I'll be fine Case," said Cappie. "Do you forget I've been a dad for six months now?"

Casey just smiled as she shut the door. He watched the girls safely make it into the ZBZ house and then drove to the Kappa Tau house.

"It's good to be home isn't it?" asked Beaver as he approached Cappie getting Cadence out of her car seat.

"Definitely Beave," Cappie replied as he picked Cadence up. "Do you mind grabbing the diaper bag for me?"

"Sure thing," Beaver replied.

"Well isn't this just a precious moment," said Gonzo as the boys approached the house. "Cappie with a baby and Beaver carrying the diaper bag. Sorry, I must have missed your wedding."

"Ha ha," Cappie replied.

"No seriously though, it's good to see you guys," said Gonzo. "Everyone's inside. I was just heading out to grab some more beer."

"Better get the good stuff," said Beaver as Gonzo headed towards his car.

Beaver opened the door to the house with Cappie following close behind. As soon as they were in view of the living room an uproar of cheers came from all the brothers.

"Hey, Hey, baby's here," said Cappie softly.

Everyone quickly "screamed" in whispered voices. Cappie laughed at the sight.

Instantly several brothers came running up to Cappie.

"Cap, I've gotta hold her," said Heath reaching for her. "She is so freaking adorable."

"I know," said Cappie with a smile as he handed Cadence to Heath.

"Look at you guys," said Wade coming over to Cappie and Beaver. "You look so grown up and professional."

"Hey, we may have grown up, but we're still the same fun KT guys we've always been," said Beaver.

"Well then, I'll get you guys a couple of beers then," said Wade.

"Oh no thanks, I'll pass," said Cappie.

Wade turned and gave him a weird look.

"I've got my kid here, I don't need to be drinking," said Cappie answering Wade's look.

Cadence was being passed from brother to brother and Cappie could tell she was enjoying every bit of it. She was cooing and making all kinds of her happy sounds.

"I still don't know how something this cute came from you Cap," said Pickle as he sat on the couch with Cadence in his arms.

"Well it's not hard when you have a beautiful wife," said Cappie with a smile.

"Speaking of, how is Casey?" asked Wade.

"She's doing very well," Cappie replied. "She and Ashleigh are at some ZBZ alumnae dinner tonight."

"I'm glad we don't do any of that formal crap," said Pickle. "This is the way it should be. Just hanging out with some of your older brothers, drinking a beer—"

"And holding a baby," interrupted Beaver with a laugh.

"Yeah, that doesn't really fit but hell, we're KT's so anything is possible right?" Pickle stated.

"Where's Spitter?" Cappie asked noticing Rusty wasn't around.

"Up in his room," Wade replied. "Moping about Jordan."

"Wait, what's going on with Jordan?" Cappie asked.

"They're 'taking a break' from the relationship," said Pickle. "He really hasn't come out of his room for days."

Cappie wondered why Rusty didn't call him. Rusty always came to him when he needed womanly advice.

"I'm going to go and say hi to him," said Cappie. "Are you guys going to be OK with Cadence?"

"She's in good hands," said Beaver nudging Cappie towards the stairs.

Cappie made his way up to his old room, the president's room. He smiled thinking about all the great memories he had in that room.

"Spitter, can I come in?" he asked knocking lightly on the door.

"Yeah, it's open," Rusty replied.

Cappie opened the door and was shocked to see the room in shambles. There were dirty dishes, tissues and food wrappers all over the place.

"Sorry it's so messy," said Rusty noticing Cappie's reaction. "I haven't really left the room much lately."

Cappie carefully made his way over to the bed and sat on the edge next to Rusty.

"What's going on Russ?" he asked.

Rusty wouldn't look at him. He continued to look at the floor.

"You know I can't help unless you open that geeky mouth of yours and start talking," said Cappie.

Rusty turned and gave Cappie a half smile.

"I was talking to Jordan a few days ago about the future," said Rusty. "I told her how much she meant to me and how I felt like I can't live without her."

"That's pretty deep Spitter," said Cappie.

"Yeah, well, too bad she didn't think so," Rusty replied. "The next thing I knew she told me she thought we were moving too fast and that we needed a break."

"So the future talk scared her," said Cappie. "Usually it's the other way around. The girl starts talking about the future and the guy runs away."

Rusty just glared at Cappie.

"OK, OK, probably not the best thing to say," said Cappie. "Have you talked to her since?"

"Not really," Rusty replied. "She sent me an e-mail talking about how it's not me, it's her and that she just needed some space to think about things."

"Have you tried going after her at all?" Cappie asked.

"No, why on earth would I do that?" Rusty asked.

Cappie let out a small laugh.

"Sometimes you just have to go and get what you want Spitter," said Cappie. "Who knows, she could be sitting at home waiting for you to come see her right now."

"Nice try, she's at the ZBZ alumnae dinner," said Rusty solemnly.

"OK, not the best example but answer me something Spitter," said Cappie. "Do you love her?"

"Of course I love her," Rusty replied. "I feel like I've loved her since the first day I met her."

"Then the best and only advice I can give you is the follow your heart," Cappie replied putting his arm around Rusty.

"I'm not sure that's the best thing right now," said Rusty.

"Listen to me Russ, I'm speaking to you from experience," said Cappie. "I've seen you and Jordan together. She does love you too, there is no doubt about that. Your sister and I played this little game for two years. And it didn't work out at first because I didn't go after her. I didn't let my heart do the talking, I let my brain do it."

"But this is completely different," said Rusty. "You have her now."

"Yes, I do," Cappie replied. "But I probably would have had her a lot sooner if I listened to my heart."

Rusty looked at Cappie and took a deep breath.

"So what should I do?" he asked.

"Nothing tonight," Cappie replied. "I think you need a night full of brotherly bonding. You know you have some of the greatest brothers in the world downstairs. Let us help cheer you up."

"And how are you going to do that? Take me to the lunch buffet?" Rusty asked with a laugh.

"Spitter, it's dinnertime. We can't do that," said Cappie. "But that doesn't mean we can't throw a patent, crazy Kappa Tau party here tonight. It'll be just the brothers, forget girls. We'll take your mind off of Jordan in no time."

"Is getting wasted really going to cheer me up Cap?" asked Rusty.

"Trust me," Cappie replied. "Have I ever let you down before?"

Rusty thought about it for a second.

"I guess not," he replied.

"So I'm going to go downstairs and make sure my daughter is still OK," said Cappie standing up. "You get some clothes on and head down in a little bit. I promise to show you a good time tonight."

"Hey Cap," said Rusty as Cappie was walking out the door.

Cappie turned to look at him.

"Thanks," said Rusty with a small smile.

"Anytime," Cappie replied as he walked out and shut the door.

Cappie walked back downstairs to see most of his brothers gathered around Cadence. Several of them were holding colorful toys they found in the diaper bag and holding them in front of her. Cadence was just smiling and giggling away.

"Oh hey Cap," said Beaver noticing Cappie had come back downstairs.

"I hate to tell you Cap, but you have quite the flirt on your hands," said Wade with a smile.

"Very funny guys," Cappie replied.

Cappie went over and plopped down in one of the recliner chairs.

"So how did it go with Rusty?" asked Pickle.

"Alright," Cappie replied. "I at least got him to agree to partying with us tonight. So we'll all just show him a good time, try to get his mind off of Jordan for the night."

"Sounds good to me," said Wade. "And Gonzo just came back with a ton of beer so we're ready to roll."

"Excellent," was all Cappie replied with a smile.

* * *

**_A/N: I just love Rusty and Cappie interaction for some reason.....hope you guys liked the chapter. I know a lot of you wanted to see Cadence interaction with the KT brothers. She's still a little young to really get good interaction with them but I'm sure I'll come up with something once she's older too....LoL!_**

**_And the suprise is going AWESOME! I can't wait to let you guys see it!!!_**


	75. Out of My Head

OUT OF MY HEAD

About two hours later Casey and Ashleigh knocked on the Kappa Tau door. Cappie answered and went out onto the porch with them.

"How was your dinner ladies?" he asked putting arms around each of them.

"Good," Casey replied. "But where's Cadence?"

"Oh one of the brothers in there has her," Cappie replied. "You'll never guess Case but our daughter has about forty new boyfriends in there."

"Do you want to tell us why we have to talk on the porch and not go in there?" interrupted Ashleigh.

"It's Rusty," said Cappie softly. "Jordan and he are having problems. I promised him a brotherly night and some time away from girls."

"Is he OK?" asked Casey.

"Not really," Cappie replied. "But I'm going to make things better for him. We're going to have a good night tonight."

"So you're not coming back to the hotel with me then?" asked Casey.

"Don't worry, I'll be there later," Cappie replied. "Spitter needs me now though."

"I understand," said Casey.

"Thanks for understanding," Cappie replied giving Casey a kiss on the cheek. "I'll go and get Cadence for you."

Ashleigh turned to Casey as Cappie went into the house.

"I guess that means Beaver is going to be hanging out here tonight too," said Ashleigh.

"Probably," Casey replied. "You know I thought Jordan seemed kind of out of it at the dinner tonight. Maybe we should go and talk to her."

"I think it's probably better just to stay out of it," Ashleigh replied. "Besides, those two are in love. They'll work things out, I just know it."

"I hope so," Casey replied. "I really like Jordan. I think she's perfect for Rusty."

Just then Cappie came walking out the front door with Cadence and her diaper bag.

"She's just now falling asleep," he said. "I, well Heath, gave her a bottle about a half an hour ago so she should be good until the morning."

The three of them walked over to the Jeep and Cappie put Cadence in the car seat. Ashleigh got into the passenger's seat as Cappie turned to Casey.

"I should be there in a few hours," he said putting his hands around her waist. "You don't have to wait up for me if you're tired. Just go ahead and go to bed."

"You behave," she said with a smile. "And keep Rusty out of trouble too."

Cappie laughed as he leaned in and kissed his wife.

"Have a good night," said Casey pulling away and getting into the driver's seat. "Love you."

"Love you too," said Cappie as he stepped up on the curb and watched them drive away.

Once back in the house the brothers were beginning to get the party into full swing. They started a game of beer pong in the back yard and some pool in the rec room. Cappie looked around trying to find Rusty but he was nowhere to be found. He grabbed a bottle of vodka off the table and headed upstairs.

"Spitter!" Cappie yelled outside of his room. "Spitter, time to get out here."

Cappie barged into Rusty's room without knocking. Rusty was dressed but he was sitting on his bed, staring into space.

"Here," said Cappie walking up to him and handing him the bottle of vodka.

"What's this?" Rusty asked.

"This, my friend, is your girlfriend tonight," said Cappie. "You are going to hold her, carry her, drink her and make sure she knows she's the most important thing in the whole room."

Rusty rolled his eyes as he took the bottle from Cappie.

"She's already begging you for a drink," said Cappie staring at him.

Rusty reluctantly unscrewed the top of the bottle and took a shot. It burned going down and tasted like hell.

"Now we're starting," said Cappie.

Rusty handed the bottle Cappie's way.

"Oh no, this night is about you Spitter," said Cappie. "None of that for me."

"Come on," said Rusty. "Shot for shot. You and me."

"You really don't want to mess with a pro Rusty," Cappie replied.

"I think you've moved down to amateur status ever since you got back together with my sister," said Rusty trying not to sound mean.

Cappie was somewhat hurt by the comment.

"Alright Spitter, you're on," Cappie replied taking the bottle from him and taking a shot.

He handed the bottle back to Rusty and the boys headed back downstairs to the party. At first things were going well. The two of them were getting drunker by the minute going shot for shot. Rusty began to loosen up the more he drank. He was laughing again and barely thought about Jordan and the problems they were having.

The boys started a rousing game of pledge bowling in the backyard when there was a knock at the door.

"I got it," said Wade as he headed to the front door.

Seconds later the backyard began to fill up with a swarm of people.

"Whoa, whoa," said Cappie. "I thought this was just going to be a KT brother only party."

"Come on Cap," said Pickle putting his arm around him. "There's nothing wrong with a few Tri-Pi girls."

"Cappiiiiieeeeee," slurred a drunken Rusty coming up to him. "I just took two shots. So you need to take two shots."

Cappie took the bottle from Rusty and took two large shots.

"How are you feeling Spitter?" said Cappie.

"Awesome," was all Rusty said as he took another swig out of the bottle.

Cappie and Rusty finished off the bottle within the next hour. Rusty insisted the two of them start on another bottle.

"Oh Rusty. Rusty, Rusty, Rusty," said Cappie quite inebriated at this point. "I love yooouu."

"No Cap," said Rusty. "I love yoooooouuuuuuuuuuu."

They both laughed as Cappie took another swig out of the bottle.

"No, no, no, no, no," said Beaver stumbling up to them. "I heart you two."

"Aw, he hearts us," said Cappie in a feminine voice.

"Cap, it's been soooooo long since I've been this drunked," said Beaver as seriously as he could.

"I know," Cappie replied. "I feel like such a lightweight. I'm just as drunk as Spitter and we've been going shot for shot."

"Women made us soft," Beaver replied.

"What did you handsome men say about women?" asked a very attractive Tri-Pi coming up to them.

"Boooooooo women," said Rusty rather loudly.

The Tri-Pi girl just laughed as a few of her sisters joined her.

"Ladies, these boys seem to be cursing off women tonight," she said to them. "I think we need to show them women are worth living for."

The three boys looked at each other. Even in their drunken states they knew letting the girls into this party was a bad idea.

* * *

Casey and Ashleigh spent a little time together before going to their separate rooms. Once Cadence was tucked away in her portable crib Casey decided to talk to Jordan, despite what Ashleigh had thought. But when she called Jordan didn't answer the phone. So instead she left her a voicemail letting her know that if she needed to talk her big sister would be there for her. Casey tried to wait up for Cappie to come to the room but her eyes began heavily drooping around midnight. So she finally turned off the light and drifted off to sleep, hoping he would kiss her when he got in.

Casey woke up the next morning cold. She found it odd because she's never cold when she wakes up. She's always surrounded by the warmth of her husband's arms. She turned over in the bed. Cappie wasn't there. She let her eyes adjust to the sun coming in the hotel room and walked to the bathroom to see if he was there. He wasn't. Casey began to panic. She picked up her cell phone and dialed his number. It went right to voicemail. The battery must have died. Casey then decided to call Ashleigh to see if Beaver made it back.

"Hello," said Ashleigh half asleep on the phone.

"Ash did Beaver come back last night?" Casey asked.

It took a couple of seconds for Ashleigh to answer. Casey figured she scanned the room and checked the bathroom just as she had done.

"No, he's not here," Ashleigh replied.

"I'm worried," said Casey.

"Me too," Ashleigh replied. "Let me call him and I'll come down to your room."

"OK, hurry," said Casey as she hung up the phone.

Casey walked over to the portable crib to make sure Cadence was OK. She was sleeping soundly.

A minute later Ashleigh knocked on the door.

"It rang and rang and rang but just went to his voicemail," she said as she barged in the room.

"Well that's better than Cappie's," said Casey. "His didn't even ring."

"Well we've got to get over to Kappa Tau and make sure everything is OK," said Ashleigh.

"Yes, of course we do," said Casey as she picked up Cadence and headed out the door.

"_Dear God please let those boys be OK",_ she thought to herself as the hotel door shut behind them.

* * *

**_A/N: OK so I've been kind of wrapped up in my Christmas story and haven't really written a whole lot for this one....but I still have 10 chapters to post before I run out and should get some serious writing done over the holidays so no worries. Also, no worries, Cappie isn't going to cheat on Casey....figured I would let that be known because I'm sure a lot of people thought that after reading this chapter....and I didn't want to leave you hanging._**

**_Oh and I've got some cute Ashleigh/Beaver interaction coming in the next couple of chapters....I'm sure you'll like :0)_**

**_I've decided that I'm going to post at least chapter 1 of my Christmas story tonight for everyone. It's called "Christmas Roadtrip" and it's a Cappie POV story. I'm sure you guys will like it :0) The whole story will probably be around 12 or 13 chapters.....currently writing 10 right now. I'm really hoping I can finish it up either tonight or tomorrow and have it all posted by Christmas Day._**


	76. These Walls

THESE WALLS

Casey quickly made her way to the Kappa Tau house. Sure she and Ashleigh were still in their pajamas but they didn't care. They needed to make sure everything was OK. They first noticed that Beaver's car was still outside so that was some relief to know they didn't get in any car accident or something. Casey grabbed Cadence and the three of them made their way inside.

Once in the house they found people laying just about everywhere. The girls first went into the living room to see if they recognized any of the boys. Ashleigh immediately spotted Beaver on the couch. She went over and shook him.

"No I don't want to go on the Magic School Bus!" he yelled, obviously still dreaming.

"Wake up Beave," said Ashleigh shaking him again.

Beaver slowly opened his eyes and looked at Ashleigh.

"We're not in the hotel room," Beaver said somewhat confused.

"You think?" Ashleigh snapped back. "What happened last night? Casey and I have been worried sick about you guys. And where are you going on the Magic School Bus?"

Beaver gave her a confused look before speaking. What was she saying about a Magic School Bus?

"I'm sorry darling," said Beaver giving Ashleigh the pouting face she always fell for. "I just got really drunk. I was in no condition to drive back to the hotel anyway."

Ashleigh wanted to be mad. But with the face Beaver gave her she couldn't help but chuckle.

"I guess I'm just glad you're safe," she said.

She leaned in and gave him a kiss on the cheek.

"What no morning kiss on the lips?" Beaver asked disappointed.

"You reek of alcohol. I don't think so," Ashleigh replied.

"Hey Beave none of these people are Cappie," said Casey as she continued to observe everyone in the living room. "Do you know where he is?"

"Last time I saw him he was headed upstairs I think," Beaver replied.

"Here, can you watch her?" Casey asked handing Cadence to Ashleigh. "I have to go find my husband."

"Sure," Ashleigh replied finding a place to sit on the couch next to Beaver.

Casey quickly made her way upstairs. She had a hunch that Cappie would be in his old room. The door was shut and she thought about knocking but decided not to. If there happened to be anything going on behind the closed door she wanted to see it first hand.

There was no movement when she opened the door and walked into the room. She looked to see Cappie was lying on his usual side of the bed. But she became scared when she noticed another body in the bed. And that person was cuddled up close to Cappie like she usually was. She couldn't make out who it was as the person was completely underneath the comforter.

Casey began nervously tapping her foot up and down on the ground which caused Cappie to stir and pull whoever he was with closer to him.

"I love you Casey," he said half asleep, thinking that was who he was cuddling with.

"I love you too Cap," Casey said.

Cappie all of a sudden opened his eyes noticing Casey's voice came from over near the door and not in the bed next to him.

"Case," he said nervously.

"Who's your friend?" Casey asked bitterly.

Cappie looked down and screamed as he sat up in the bed.

"Rusty what in the hell are you doing?" he yelled as the person cuddling with him finally woke up.

"Ow Cap, you don't have to scream," said Rusty sitting up and covering his ears. "I've got one hell of a headache."

"I should have had my camera," said Casey. "You two just looked so cute all cuddled up together."

Both boys glared at Casey.

"Excuse me, I have to go to the bathroom," said Rusty rushing out the door like he was going to throw up.

"So looks like you had a fun night," said Casey as she sat on the bed next to Cappie.

"I am so sorry Case," he said. "Rusty challenged me to do shot for shot with him and the next thing I knew I was passed out in here."

"I was pretty lonely last night," said Casey making him feel guilty.

"You had Cadence," Cappie replied. "Speaking of, where is she?"

"Downstairs with Ash and Beav," Casey replied.

"Man I messed up," said Cappie. "I'm a husband and a father now. I shouldn't be getting drunk with my frat brothers anymore."

Casey knew he looked hurt and decided making him feel guilty was only going to hurt him more.

"You're a young father though," said Casey. "You need a night to let loose every once in a while."

"You're really not mad at me?" Cappie asked.

"No," Casey replied. "The only thing I'm a little upset about is having to drag Cadence and myself all the way over here this morning in our pajamas."

"You do look kind of sexy though," he said pulling her close to him.

Casey turned away before her could kiss her.

"Alcohol and morning breath don't mix sweetheart. I'll pass until you take care of that."

Cappie let her go as Rusty slowly walked back into the room. He plopped back down on the bed.

"I feel like someone is drilling into my head over and over and over again," he mumbled.

"You'll feel better in a few hours Spitter," said Cappie. "But you have to admit, I did get your mind off Jordan last night."

"My mind wasn't on much of anything last night Cap," Rusty replied.

"I think once you start feeling better you should just go talk to her," Casey piped in. "The all-Greek dinner and dance is tonight and I'm sure she'll be there. You don't want things to be all awkward."

"The Kappa Taus already decided we are not attending," said Rusty.

"So, that doesn't mean you can't go," said Casey. "Jordan sounded excited about it when I talked to her last night."

"You talked to her?" asked Rusty sitting up. "Did she say anything about me?"

"We didn't really talk about you," Casey replied. "Mostly Greek stuff. I didn't even know you two were having problems until Cappie told me."

"I just feel like I didn't do anything wrong," said Rusty. "So why should I be the one to make the first move?"

"Because girls dig that," Cappie replied. "They're always waiting for some grand movie moment in their lives when the guy comes running after them and professes his love."

"Oh very funny," said Casey crossing her arms remembering she had told that to Cappie after the End of the World party.

"It's true, trust me Russ," said Cappie ignoring Casey's comment.

"I'll take your advice Cap. But not before I go back to sleep."

Cappie laughed.

"That's probably a good idea," he said. "In the meantime I'm going to take my wife and daughter back to the hotel where we are supposed to be right now. We'll catch up with you tonight."

"Alright, bye guys," said Rusty.

"Bye Russ and good luck," Casey said as they two of them walked out of the door.

"I'm really sorry again for last night," said Cappie putting his arm around Casey as they walked down the stairs. "It never should have happened."

"It's not a big deal," Casey replied. "I'm glad you were able to have a little bit of fun."

The two of them turned the corner to see Beaver and Ashleigh leaning against each other sleeping on the couch. Beaver held Cadence in his arms. She was also sleeping.

"Aw how cute," said Casey.

"I probably should wake Beave up and take Cadence before the brothers wake-up and question his manhood," said Cappie with a laugh.

Once Cappie got them awake they all headed back to the hotel for much needed naps. After having a late lunch together it was time to get ready for the all-Greek party.

* * *

**_A/N: So I'm going to post two chapters today because I'm not sure if I'm going to be able to get one up tomorrow or not since it's Christmas. I think a lot of you will like the next chapter so I'm sure you won't be too disappointed having to wait a day for an update. I think tomorrow may be my first day missed posting a chapter since I started this thing....crazy!_**


	77. Piece of My Heart

PIECE OF MY HEART

"Are you sure your brothers don't mind watching Cadence?" Casey asked as they drove onto campus.

"They would much rather be watching Cadence then going to the party, trust me," Cappie replied.

"This is like the first time we're leaving her with anyone who isn't family," said Casey. "It's kind of scary."

"The brothers are great with her," Cappie replied pulling up in front of the Kappa Tau house. "And we'll be right down the street if anything is needed."

Casey turned around to Cadence in the back seat to say goodbye as Cappie got out of the car. After prying Casey's hands off of her he was finally able to take Cadence inside to the boys.

"Casey wrote a schedule for you guys," said Cappie handing Pickle a piece of paper. "Basically when she should get her bottles and when she should be ready to sleep."

"You're wife is always the worry wart," said Pickle taking the list from Cappie.

Cappie leaned down to kiss Cadence goodbye and then he was out the door. He drove a short way down the road and the two of them headed hand in hand into the party. They scanned the room and eventually found their friends sitting at a table towards the back.

"Nice of you two to make it," said Evan as they approached the table.

"We're not that late are we?" Casey asked sitting down in the chair Cappie had pulled out for her.

"No you're not late, don't listen to him," said Rebecca playfully punching Evan's arm.

"Jordan, where's Rusty?" Casey asked turning to her.

"I don't think the KTs are coming," Jordan replied.

"Cap and I are here," piped in Beaver.

"Yeah but you're alumnae," she replied. "You're expected to be here."

Casey was somewhat disappointed in her brother. She thought for sure he was going to talk to Jordan this afternoon so things could be cleared up before the party tonight.

"Alright, time for some drinks," said Cappie standing up. "Where's the bar around here?"

"To the right," Evan replied pointing to it.

"Anyone else need anything?" Cappie asked.

Everyone shook their heads no and he was off to the bar. As he approached he saw a very familiar figure sitting on one of the barstools.

"You know you can join us at the table," said Cappie sitting next to Rusty and ordering drinks for him and Casey.

"I walked in," said Rusty softly. "I was ready to go up to her and talk to her. But then I chickened out and here I am at the bar drowning myself in alcohol yet again."

"Rusty you seriously need to grow some balls and go over there and talk to Jordan," said Cappie.

"I just don't know what to do, I don't know what to say," Rusty replied.

"Let your heart do the talking," said Cappie. "That's really all you can do."

The bartender handed Cappie the drinks.

"Come on Spitter, let's go," he said standing up and motioning Rusty to follow him over to the table.

Rusty got up slowly and followed closely behind Cappie to the table.

"Look what I found," said Cappie as he set the drinks on the table and put his arm around Rusty.

"Jordan, can we talk?" asked Rusty figuring the more time he wasted the more likely he would chicken out.

"Sure," she said standing up.

The two of them walked outside and sat on a bench near the entrance. There were several minutes of awkward silence.

"So what did you want to talk about?" Jordan finally asked.

"I wanted to tell you I'm sorry," said Rusty with a deep breath.

"What are you sorry about?" Jordan asked.

"I'm sorry for moving too fast I guess," Rusty replied. "I just figured talking about the future was appropriate given we've been dating for almost a year now."

"I know," said Jordan letting out a sigh. "You didn't do anything wrong."

"So then why are we doing this?" Rusty asked. "If I didn't do anything wrong then why are we taking a break?"

"Rusty do you want what your sister has?" Jordan asked.

"What do you mean?" Rusty replied.

"The marriage, the big house, the beautiful family, that kind of stuff," said Jordan.

"I guess," Rusty replied. "Isn't that what everyone wants?"

"Not me," Jordan replied looking at the ground.

"You don't want to get married?" Rusty asked swallowing a lump in his throat.

"Not right after graduation," Jordan replied.

There was a brief silence.

"Rusty," she said turning to him and taking his hand into hers. "Eventually one day down the road I'll want to get married. But I have a dream of traveling after I graduate, enjoying life to the fullest with no strings attached."

"And I'm the string that's going to hold you back," said Rusty sadly.

"That's not what I meant Russ," she replied. "I see you in my future. I do see us getting married, just not right away."

"Jordan I wasn't talking about marriage when I was telling you how much you mean to me," said Rusty. "I don't want to get married for a while either."

"Oh, well I feel kind of like a dummy then," she replied.

"Why?" asked Rusty.

"Because I know how much you look up to your sister," replied Jordan. "Casey's a great woman. I just thought you would want to be like her and get married right out of college, start a family, all those things."

"You forget that Casey didn't really have a choice in the matter," said Rusty. "There was a baby involved and that kind of pushed her plans up a little. That's all."

Jordan smiled softly at Rusty.

"Jordan, I love you and I see you in my future," said Rusty squeezing her hand. "We don't have to move too fast, that's not what this is all about. I just want you to know that you really do mean the world to me and I would do anything for you."

"Aw Russ," said Jordan leaning against him. "You know I love you too. I'm sorry for freaking out like that. Can we go back to being together?"

"I would love to pretend like this never happened," said Rusty wrapping his arms around her.

She turned around and kissed him softly before returning to lean against him.

Meanwhile, inside the party the DJ started playing some music.

"Hey Case, I'm going to go call Pickle and make sure everything is OK with Cadence," he said standing up from the table.

"OK," Casey replied taking a sip of her forth lemon drop of the night.

Beaver turned to Ashleigh as Cappie left to call and check on Cadence.

"Would you like to dance?" he asked.

"Sure," Ashleigh replied standing up and taking Beaver's hand.

They walked out to the dance floor and put their arms around each other.

"Are you having a nice time tonight?" Beaver asked.

"I am," Ashleigh replied. "This kind of reminds me of the Greek Balls we used to have."

"How could you never forget those," Beaver replied. "Especially the first one. I was so drunk I could barely walk."

"Well you certainly found some strength to get involved in the Cappie and Evan fight," said Ashleigh.

"Anything to help my best friend out," said Beaver. "Cappie's always been like my wingman."

"Yeah, you two make a pretty awesome team," she said. "But honestly I wish I could go back and change all of the Balls I went to."

"Why's that?" asked Beaver pulling her a little closer to him.

"Well the first one was obviously a mistake with the whole Cappie and Evan fight. Casey was my friend and I felt for her so I really didn't have a chance to have a very good time. Then sophomore year we didn't have the ball. Junior year was OK but I didn't have a date so that was kind of depressing. And then senior year I went with Fisher and we all know how that turned out."

"Makes me regret never asking you," said Beaver looking into her eyes.

Ashleigh gave him a confused look.

"I almost did junior year," Beaver stated. "But I got cold feet and didn't do it. I've been crushing on you for a while."

"I have a confession to make," said Ashleigh with a small smile.

"What?" asked Beaver.

"When Casey was spying on Cappie our senior year I heard you tell him that you thought I was hot. I was flattered and it sort of made my heart flutter a little bit. But I didn't act on it because I had Fisher at the time."

"When I think about it though I'm not sure if we would have made it if we got together any earlier than we did," said Beaver. "I've done a lot of growing this past year and I probably wouldn't have been able to treat you like you deserved when we were in college. It would have been like Casey and Cappie freshman year all over again."

"You really think that?" Ashleigh asked.

Beaver just nodded his head.

"Well all that really matters is that we are together now," said Ashleigh leaning up and giving him a kiss. "And everything is great."

"It is pretty great," said Beaver with a smile.

Ashleigh wrapped her arms around Beaver tighter and leaned her head on his shoulder.

"Hey Ash," said Beaver somewhat nervously.

Ashleigh stood straight again so she could look into his eyes.

"I'm far from your mushy guy. I think Cappie might be rubbing off on me or something."

Ashleigh let out a small laugh.

"Anyway," he said clearing his throat. "I just wanted to say that you make me one of the happiest guys in the world. And these past seven months have been amazing."

"Beave, what are you trying to say?" Ashleigh asked.

Beaver took a deep breath.

"I love you Ash," he said.

Ashleigh stood there, completely stunned. Her heart was racing with Beaver's words. She said the first thing that came to her mind.

"I love you too," she replied softly.

Beaver leaned down and gave her a kiss on the lips pulling her hips closer to him. Nothing else mattered at that moment. He had never felt so good.

* * *

**_A/N: So yay for Beaver and Ashliegh moments :0) Next chapter Cappie and Casey join them on the dance floor for their dance that should have happened freshman year......_**

**_Please keep the reviews coming....I'm in need of some motivation to a lot of writing over the next few days! Thanks!_**


	78. Dancin in the Wind

DANCIN' IN THE WIND

Casey sat at the table by herself staring at all of her friends on the dance floor. She noticed Beaver and Ashleigh were very close and the sight made her smile. She never realized in school how good the two of them could have been for each other. She was glad Ashleigh finally found a good guy in her life.

Casey then turned her eyes to Rebecca and Evan on the dance floor. She laughed on the inside thinking about everything they had been through. Freshman year it was her and Evan dancing together. Junior year was Rebecca and Cappie. Senior year she didn't go, sparing anymore embarrassment. Oh what a love triangle, or square, the four of them were in. But she also smiled knowing that everything worked out for the best. Evan and Rebecca were perfect for each other.

Eventually she saw Rusty and Jordan had joined everyone on the dance floor. She smiled once again watching the two of them smile and laugh as they danced. It looked like the they worked out their differences and Casey couldn't be happier. She really liked Jordan and she seems to be really good for Rusty. He's grown a lot in the past year being with her.

Casey was shaken out of her thoughts when someone touched her shoulder.

"Frannie?" she asked. "What are you doing here?"

"Well I was a part of the Greek system for years," she replied. "I'm welcomed here just as much as you are."

"Yeah but the IKIs disbanded. I didn't expect you to be here."

"I wanted to come and see what is going on with all my friends," Frannie replied.

"I don't think any of us would consider you a friend," Casey replied.

"Come on Case, can't we let bygones be bygones?" asked Frannie. "It's been over a year."

"We have a lot of history Fran," said Casey trying her best to stay as calm as possible.

"Well if it means anything Case I see that you're doing well for yourself," said Frannie.

"Thanks," Casey replied.

"And married I see," she said grabbing Casey's left hand and looking at her rings. "And by the size of this thing I'm thinking a nice rich man."

"Is everything OK here?" asked Cappie coming up to the two of them and putting his arm around Casey.

"Cappie," said Frannie. "You are looking very nice."

"Thank you," said Cappie. "I hope you're not messing with my wife."

Frannie got a shocked look on her face.

"Wait, Cappie is your husband?" she asked with a laugh.

"Yes," Casey replied as she wrapped her arm around Cappie's waist.

Frannie still stood there shocked.

"And we have a beautiful baby girl," said Cappie rubbing it in a little more by pulling out his wallet and showing Frannie a picture of Cadence.

"She is beautiful," Frannie replied. "I never would have guessed you two would ever make your relationship work."

"Well we couldn't be happier," said Cappie as he pulled Casey tighter to him and kissed her on the cheek.

"Everything seems to have gone a little crazy," said Frannie as she looked out onto the dance floor. "You two are together, Evan and Rebecca and Ashleigh and Beaver. Who would have thought?"

"How about you Frannie?" asked Casey changing the subject. "What is going on in your life?"

"Oh Mark is around her somewhere," she said looking around the room. "We've been dating for a few months now."

"Well that's good," Casey replied. "Is he an alumnae too?"

"He was a Lambda Sig," Frannie replied. "But he graduated when I was a freshman so you wouldn't know him."

There was an awkward silence between the three of them.

"OK, well I should probably go find Mark," said Frannie. "It was nice seeing you Casey. And congratulations to you two. Tell everyone else I said hello."

Frannie leaned forward and shared an awkward hug with Casey like nothing had ever happened between the two of them.

"Good seeing you Frannie," said Cappie with a wave as she walked away.

He turned to Casey.

"Talk about awkward," said Casey. "I had no idea she would be here."

"Oh it wasn't that bad," Cappie replied. "There weren't any punches thrown at least."

"There could have been," said Casey. "But I had my superhero to come over and save me."

Casey turned and wrapped her arms around Cappie's waist.

"You know what I said," said Cappie putting his arms around her. "I go where I'm needed. And that is to protect you and our little girl for the rest of my life."

Casey smiled.

"So how is our baby?" she asked.

"She's doing well," Cappie replied. "Pickle said the boys have been wearing her out with all of the playing they've done with her. He's about to give her the last bottle of the night."

"That's good," Casey replied. "I'm glad you have some pretty awesome brothers."

"Why don't we take this out onto the dance floor?" Cappie asked looking down into Casey's eyes.

"I would love to," she replied.

Cappie led Casey out onto the dance floor next to their friends.

"About time you guys joined us," said Ashleigh with a smile.

Casey ignored her best friend's comment as she wrapped her arms around her husband and began to sway back and forth.

"You know, we never really got to do this," said Cappie softly in her ear.

"Do what?" Casey asked.

"Slow dance," said Cappie. "Together."

"Yeah," Casey sighed. "I remember freshman year how much I was looking forward to dancing with you. We'd never done it before and I was actually kind of nervous that you didn't know how."

Cappie laughed.

"You really didn't have a lot of faith in me back then did you?" he asked.

"Of course I did Cap," said Casey backing away and looking into his eyes. "I think maybe I had too much faith in you. I waited around for hours for you to pick me up. I kept holding onto the hope that you would have a good reason for why you didn't show up on time."

"Well I think everyone agrees that I won the douche bag of the year award that night," he replied.

"I don't want to talk about it anymore," said Casey as she put her head back on Cappie's chest. "All that matters is that we are here now."

"Very true," Cappie replied as he squeezed Casey tighter.

The night came to an end around midnight. Ashleigh pulled Casey and Rebecca aside while the guys went to get their jackets.

"Guys, Beaver told me he loved me tonight," squealed Ashleigh barely containing her excitement.

"Yay I'm so happy for you!" said Casey giving Ashleigh a hug.

"That is awesome Ash," said Rebecca also giving her a hug. "Pretty soon you'll get one of these bad boys on your hand." Rebecca held up her engagement ring.

"I wouldn't say anything like that," said Ashleigh. "But this is such an exciting night. I knew Beaver and I were getting pretty serious but I really didn't know he felt quite like that."

"Boys surprise you sometimes," said Rebecca smiling at Evan as the boys walked up to them.

"Ready to go ladies?" asked Cappie as he handed Casey her coat.

The six friends exited the building.

"Did you guys want to get breakfast in the morning before heading back to Chicago?" Evan asked.

"Actually we're leaving pretty early," said Beaver. "I've got to get back to the restaurant."

"Oh OK," Evan replied. "It was really good seeing all of you."

"You too," said Ashleigh as they all began to give each other hugs.

"You guys are welcome in Chicago anytime," said Casey. "We'd love to have you."

"We'll make a trip out there soon," said Rebecca. "Promise."

Evan and Rebecca headed off to their car as the other four went the other way.

"We have to stop by the house to pick up Cadence," said Casey. "So we'll catch you guys in the morning?"

"Sounds good," said Ashleigh. "See you then."

Cappie and Casey got into the Jeep and headed over to the KT house. Cappie opened the door loudly and was met with several shhhhhs from his brothers.

"Cadence is sleeping," said Gonzo in a whispering voice.

Cappie almost laughed as he saw Cadence in her carrier on top of the coffee table with several brothers around her pretty much watching her breathe.

"I hope she wasn't too much trouble," Cappie whispered as he picked up her carrier.

"Not at all," replied Pickle. "She's welcome back anytime she wants."

"Thanks guys for doing this," said Cappie as he walked to the door.

He put Cadence in the car.

"She looks well taken care of," said Casey as she looked at Cadence sleeping in the back seat.

"Of course," Cappie replied. "I wouldn't expect anything less from my brothers."

The three of them drove back to the hotel. They put Cadence in the portable crib as the two of them got ready for bed. Cappie was already in bed when Casey came out of the bathroom. He lifted up the covers inviting her in. She snuggled right next to him.

"Hey Case," he said softly.

Casey turned her head around to look at him.

"I just want to say that I'm sorry," said Cappie. "I don't think I ever really apologized for not showing up to the Greek Ball freshman year. Just know that I still regret it to this day."

"I accept your apology," said Casey. "And please don't continue to regret it. Everything happens for a reason. Who knows where we would be today if you had shown up that day."

"True," Cappie replied.

"Besides," said Casey as she laid her head back down on Cappie's chest. "I like it better this way. I'm the happiest I have ever been."

"Me too sweetheart. Me too," Cappie whispered as the two of them slowly fell asleep.

* * *

**_A/N: So I hope everyone had a Happy Holiday! Only one month until the new chapter of Greek starts! _**

**_Anyone surprised to see Frannie show up in this story?? LoL! I couldn't help but add her in because I knew she would be surprised to see Cappie and Casey doing so well in their lives. And I knew Cappie would be the type of person to grab Casey and rub it in Frannie's face as soon as he got the chance....haha._**

**_In the next couple of chapters Evan and Rebecca come to Chicago for a visit so you'll get some stuff with the two of them for the couple of people who asked :0)_**

**_And yes I plan to keep this story going until the season returns in a month because it keeps me from missing the show during the hiatus just as much as it does you guys._**


	79. Take My Time

TAKE MY TIME

Cadence turned eight months in June. Since CRU was out for summer break Evan and Rebecca decided to make a trip to Chicago to visit for the weekend. They were due to arrive in about an hour. Casey was rushing around the kitchen trying to prepare dinner while Cadence watched her intently from her playpen. Cappie had been at work all day but was due home any minute.

Casey had just put the casserole in the oven when she noticed she smelled something other than what she was cooking. She went over to Cadence who just looked up at her mom and smiled.

"Of course you have to have a diaper change right before your father gets home," said Casey picking her up. "You couldn't wait just five more minutes so he could have the joy of changing you huh?"

Casey spread out a blanket on the living room floor and got a new diaper and wipes. She was pretty much a master when it came to changing diapers at this point. Within a couple of minutes she was done and Cadence smelled fresh again. Casey heard the beeper go off on the oven and stood up to go throw the dirty diaper away and turn off the oven. Just then Cappie came walking in through the garage door.

"Honey I'm home," he yelled.

Casey smiled and rolled her eyes. Cappie made it a habit to say that every time he came home lately and even though it was cute, it was annoying at times. He came up behind her and put his arms around her.

"How are you gorgeous?" he asked kissing her neck.

"Good," giggled Casey as shivers went down her spine.

She turned around and kissed Cappie on the lips.

"How was your day at work?" she asked.

"Productive," Cappie replied. "I don't think I'm going to have to go in on Monday because I got so much done today."

"That will be nice," said Casey. "Especially since we'll have a busy weekend with Bex and Evan here."

"Speaking of them," said Cappie. "When are they due in?"

"About a half hour I think," said Casey looking at the clock.

"Where is Cadence?" asked Cappie looking around the kitchen. "Is she still sleeping?"

"No, she's in the living room on the blanket," said Casey. "I just had to change her diaper."

Cappie kicked off his shoes as he made his way to the living room.

"Uh, Case, the baby is not on the blanket," he said.

"Of course she is," Casey said walking over to him. "That's exactly where—"

Casey stopped mid-sentence when she saw Cadence wasn't on the blanket. She was shocked but then quickly smiled. Instead of on the blanket Cadence had made her way over by the fireplace. She was sitting there with her legs spread out just smiling away.

"What do you think you're doing?" asked Cappie playfully as he knelt down beside her. "How did you get over here?"

Cadence just cooed at her dad and continued smiling.

"Do you think she crawled?" Casey asked.

"I guess," Cappie replied. "Let's see if we can get her to do it again."

Casey found one of Cadence's favorite toys by the fireplace, a pink ball that Ashleigh had gotten her.

"I bet she was trying to get this," said Casey as she went over and picked it up.

Cadence stared intently at her mom and clapped her hands as Casey carried the toy back over to where the blanket was. Cappie got up and also went over by Casey.

"Come on sweetheart," he said taking the ball from Casey and waving it in the air. "Come get your toy."

Cadence at first just stared at her parents like they were the weirdest people she had ever seen. But slowly she leaned down on her hands and brought her knees under her.

"Oh my gosh she's doing it," said Casey quietly.

Cadence slowly moved her hands, then legs towards her parents and the ball she wanted so badly. Cappie was amazed by her determination. There were a couple of times that she lost her balance and plopped right on the ground. But she got right back up and made her way to her goal. She crawled right up to Cappie and sat back right in front of him, looking up at him with the proudest look on her face like _look what I did daddy, aren't you proud_? Cappie smiled widely as he picked her up.

"That was so great Cadence!" he exclaimed. "I am so proud of you!"

Cadence giggled as Cappie began to kiss her cheeks and squeeze her tight.

"Good job sweetie!" said Casey as she stroked the back of her head.

"You know what this means…" Cappie trailed off looking at Casey.

Casey shook her head no, having no idea what Cappie was talking about.

"We're going to have to start majorly baby-proofing this house," he said. "I know definitely this weekend I'm going to have to put the baby gate up on the stairs."

"Yeah, no kidding," said Casey as she stood up and went back into the kitchen.

"I'm going to take her upstairs with me while I change my clothes," said Cappie picking Cadence up. "We'll be down in a bit."

"OK," said Casey as she began putting some of the food on the dining room table.

She smiled as she watched Cappie talk to Cadence the entire way upstairs. That little girl certainly had her dad's heart in her hand. She has certainly become a daddy's girl in the short eight months she's been in this world. Casey could only imagine how it's going to be when she's older.

A few minutes later the doorbell rang.

"Hey guys!" said Casey as she answered the door for Rebecca and Evan.

"Hey Casey, how are you?" asked Rebecca as she gave her a hug.

"I'm good," Casey replied.

"Hey Case," said Evan as he walked in carrying their bags.

"You can put those up in the guest room if you want," said Casey.

Rebecca followed Casey into the kitchen as Evan went upstairs to drop off their bags.

"So how's little Cadence?" asked Rebecca as she sat at the kitchen table.

"She's great," Casey replied. "She actually crawled for the first time just before you guys got here."

"That's amazing Case," said Rebecca.

"Yeah," said Casey with a sigh. "I'm so proud of her but at the same time I'm kind of sad because she's growing up so fast."

"Well you can just have another baby and it won't matter too much," said Rebecca with a smile.

"You better watch out what you say," said Casey. "Or I just may be several months pregnant walking down the aisle in your wedding. And I don't think you'll want that."

"Eh, wouldn't matter to me," Rebecca replied shrugging her shoulders.

"So, how are the wedding plans going?" Casey asked.

"Fantastic," Rebecca replied. "I've got a few appointments set up for dress shopping in the next few weeks and we got the venue all set up."

"It'll be in Columbus right?" Casey asked.

"Yeah," Rebecca replied.

"Do I dare ask how long the guest list is now?" asked Casey who knew Rebecca and Evan were having a lot of problems finalizing the list.

"Five hundred people," said Rebecca with a sigh. "His parents and my parents just won't budge on cutting some people off the list. I don't know how I'm even going to be able to say hello to all of those people in the few short hours after the ceremony."

"It's OK Bex," said Casey sitting next to her at the table. "You probably won't even know half the people anyway."

"That's true," Rebecca replied.

Casey smiled.

"So I was thinking," said Rebecca. "I think we should make a salon appointment tomorrow. Maybe get our nails done or even a massage."

"Oh that sounds wonderful," Casey replied. "Cap's not doing anything tomorrow so he can watch Cadence and we can have some girly time."

"Can't wait," said Rebecca with a smile.

"Look who I found sneaking around upstairs," said Cappie as him and Evan walked down the stairs.

"Hey Cap," said Rebecca standing and giving him a hug. "Where's Cadence?"

"She usually takes a short evening nap," Cappie replied. "So I have her in the crib so we can maybe have dinner in peace."

"Well I hope she wakes up soon," Rebecca replied. "I've been dying to see her. She's probably gotten so big."

"She has," Cappie replied. "And she should be up in about an hour. And she'll be nice and rested for you to play with her."

"If you guys want to come in the dining room dinner is just about ready," said Casey grabbing some drinks for them.

"Aren't Ash and Beave joining us?" asked Rebecca as she sat at the dining room table.

"They were," Casey replied. "But Ashleigh ended up having some sort of work conference that she and Beave went to instead. They'll be back Sunday and may come over if you guys are still here."

"How are the two of them doing?" asked Evan as he dipped up some salad.

"Great as far as I know," Casey replied. "They've been pretty much inseparable once Beaver told her he loved her at the Greek reunion."

"That was so sweet of him," said Rebecca.

"How about you two?" asked Cappie.

"Couldn't be better," Rebecca replied with a smile.

"How do you guys like living together?" asked Casey.

"Nothing's really different," said Rebecca. "I was always staying at his apartment during school anyway."

"That's good," Casey replied.

The four of them chatted about life and future plans while they ate dinner. After the dishes were cleaned up Cappie went upstairs and brought Cadence into the living room.

"Oh my gosh she has gotten so big!" exclaimed Rebecca as she took Cadence from Cappie.

"Hey little girl," said Evan pinching her cheek.

"Cap she's really beginning to look like you," said Rebecca.

"Everyone says that," said Cappie joining them on the couch. "Poor Casey, I don't think anyone has said Cadence looks like her."

"Very funny," said Casey sitting next to him.

"Have you guys been able to get out much?" Evan asked.

"No, not really," Casey replied looking at Cappie. "We've left her with my parents a few times so we could go to dinner or something but that's not too often."

"I don't know how you do it," said Rebecca. "I would need a break at least once a week."

"Well Cappie and I have a pretty good system worked out," said Casey. "He gives me some time by watching her and I will do the same for him."

"But what about time together?" Evan asked.

"Oh we find time," said Cappie with a sly smile as he leaned over and kissed his wife.

"She's a very smiley baby," said Rebecca ignoring Cappie's comment as she played with Cadence.

"Yeah she really is great," said Casey. "She really doesn't cry a whole lot unless she's hungry or needs to be changed. Most of the time she's just pretty happy and care-free."

Eventually Rebecca and Evan moved to the floor with Cadence so they could watch her crawl around. Cadence was certainly a show-off and was moving all over the living room. Pretty soon she became worn out and was ready for bed. After she was asleep the two couples watched a movie in the living room before heading off to bed themselves.

* * *

**_A/N: I was just going to post one chapter today but figured I would do two because this chapter didn't have too much happening in it other than Cadence crawling for the first time :0)_**


	80. Get Up and Go

The next morning Cappie woke up to his alarm going off.

"Why did you set your alarm?" asked Casey in a groggy tone.

"Didn't Rebecca tell you that Ev and I have a ten o'clock tee time?" Cappie asked as he turned the alarm off.

"Uh, no," said Casey staring at Cappie.

"Well we do," he said. "So we'll probably be tied up until dinner time. Maybe we can all head to the restaurant for dinner."

"Wait," said Casey as she sat up in the bed. "Rebecca and I were planning on going to the salon today to get our nails done."

"What time is your appointment?" Cappie asked.

"We don't have one yet," Casey replied. "But I was planning sometime after lunch like around one."

"I hope Cadence behaves for you," said Cappie. "Because that's usually around her nap time."

"I wasn't planning on bringing Cadence," said Casey. "I figured you could watch her."

"Sorry, I'm busy with Evan," Cappie replied. "Maybe your parents can watch her."

"They're out of town for the weekend," said Casey. "They met Rusty at some conference for his polymer science project."

"Oh," Cappie replied. "Well looks like you guys can do the salon tomorrow."

"They're not open on Sundays," said Casey. "Today is the only time we can do it."

"Well I'm not taking a baby golfing Case," said Cappie staring at her.

"So I'm just supposed to cancel my plans?" asked Casey.

"You don't even have an appointment time Case," said Cappie. "Evan and I are already committed at the golf course."

"That doesn't mean that you can't cancel," said Casey who was becoming irritated with Cappie.

"I'm not cancelling," said Cappie.

"Oh OK, I guess I'll just leave Cadence here by herself. She should be OK," said Casey bitterly.

"Now don't go saying stuff like that," said Cappie. "It's—"

"Stuff like what?" Casey interrupted raising her voice a little. "I just don't understand why your plans are more important than mine. Someone needs to either take Cadence with them or stay home and watch her."

"And I made my plans thinking that was going to be you," he replied. "I thought you and Rebecca would just stay around here all day."

"Cap I'm in this house almost all day, every day," said Casey. "I'm cooking, cleaning, doing laundry, taking care of the baby. I want some time out of the house with one of my best friends."

Cappie took a deep breath.

"Look, I'll make it up to you Case," he said reaching out for her. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you about the golf plans but what is done is done."

"Yeah, I guess so," said Casey snatching her hand away from Cappie's and standing up.

"Where are you going?" Cappie asked.

"To get my daughter," said Casey grabbing her robe. "We're just going to have a splendid time hanging around the house today. Enjoy your golf," she said in the most sarcastic and bitter tone she could.

Casey shut the bedroom door as she walked out. Cappie got out of bed and put a pair of pants on before going after her. He found her in Cadence's room.

"Why are you doing this to me?" he asked walking in and shutting the door.

"I'm not doing anything to you," said Casey sitting in the rocking chair with Cadence. "You're the one who isn't trying to compromise."

"There is nothing to compromise about," said Cappie. "One of us goes, one of us stays. That's all there is to it."

"And I told you to go," said Casey. "So please just go get ready and go."

"You don't really mean that," said Cappie.

"Well aren't you just a rocket scientist," said Casey rolling her eyes.

"God Casey why are you doing this to me?" said Cappie throwing his arms up into the air.

"I'm not trying to do anything," Casey replied. "I'm just hurt that I'm being put in this situation."

"Look, I told you I would make it up to you—"

"I'm not sure if you can," interrupted Casey. "Today is the only day Rebecca and I can go to the salon. So unless you cancel your golf there is no making it up to me."

"So you're just going to be mad at me about this the entire day?" Cappie asked.

"Maybe longer," said Casey in a bitter tone once again.

"Whatever Case, you just do that," said Cappie. "I'll catch you later."

Casey sat rocking Cadence while Cappie walked out of the room. She kind of had to shake herself into reality a bit. Did she and Cappie really have a fight? She can't remember the last time the two of them really had an argument. Casey just thought Cappie's reaction was not himself for some reason. He would do just about anything for Cadence. But for some reason golf with Evan was a much higher priority to him today. Cadence looked up at Casey and began to gurgle.

"Are you hungry?" Casey asked in a baby voice. "Are you ready for some breakfast?"

Casey walked out of the baby's room and downstairs to get Cadence something to eat. She put Cadence in the highchair and made some infant cereal for her. She was sitting at the table feeding it to her when Evan came walking down the stairs.

"Morning Case," he said.

"Morning," Casey replied looking up at Evan. "You ready for some golfing?"

"Of course," Evan replied sitting at the table next to Casey. "I haven't golfed in a while so I'll probably be pretty rusty. Luckily Cappie sucks so I should still win."

"Yeah, he isn't very good," said Casey with a chuckle.

"Rebecca is still sleeping," said Evan. "I'm sure you can go and wake her up if you want."

"No, I'll let her sleep," Casey replied. "Besides, it will give me time to get Cadence fed and ready for the day before she gets up."

"What are you two planning on doing today?" Evan asked.

"Nothing's planned," Casey lied. "Just hanging out around the house."

"I thought Rebecca said something about getting her nails done," said Evan.

"Oh who knows," Casey replied. "We'll just go with the flow I guess."

Cappie came walking downstairs in his golf clothes. He made glaring eye contact with Casey before turning to Evan.

"Morning Ev," he said. "Are you ready to get your ass whooped?"

"Sure Cap, whatever you say," said Evan with a smile as he stood up.

Cappie went over to Cadence and gave her several kisses on the cheek as she giggled and squealed.

"I love you Cadence," he said. "Daddy will be home soon."

He turned to Casey and made one last eye contact. This one wasn't as glaring as the last but he wasn't about to lean down and kiss her after the way she treated him this morning.

"We'll be back later," was all he said as him and Evan left through the garage.

Casey slammed Cadence's spoon down in her cereal bowl in frustration as soon as the garage door closed. The last thing she wanted to do was fight was Cappie. This really wasn't getting them anywhere.

* * *

**_A/N: Uh oh.....the first fight having to do with Cadence :0( Review and let me know what you guys think!_**


	81. Leave the Light On

LEAVE THE LIGHT ON

Casey and Rebecca spent most of the day at the house. They did venture out with Cadence for a little bit to get some ice cream after lunch but it was only a short trip. When they were at home they spent a lot of time on the computer looking at wedding dresses and flowers for Rebecca's wedding. Casey could tell she was really excited about it and she knew Rebecca would make such a beautiful bride.

Later that evening they met Evan and Cappie at the restaurant for dinner. Evan and Rebecca really enjoyed the atmosphere and food and were impressed with what Cappie and Beaver did with the place. Casey was worried that the fight her and Cappie had in the morning would be apparent between the two of them during dinner but it wasn't. Cappie was actually pulled away from the table several times to handle some business things. He felt bad but knew he had responsibilities to his job and tried to get things done as quickly as he could.

Cadence was very good at the restaurant. She had been there many times before and a lot of the staff knew her and came up to say hi. She was just beginning to eat some solid foods so Casey was able to give her some Cheerios to keep her pretty occupied while she talked with her friends.

The drive home was pretty silent. Cappie pulled into the garage and took a sleeping Cadence into the house and up to her room.

"Casey I've had a pretty busy day with golfing and everything so I think I'm going to head to bed early," said Evan.

Casey looked at him strangely sensing something was wrong.

"Are you sure you're OK Evan?" she asked.

"Yeah, just tired," he replied as he walked up the stairs.

Casey turned to look at Rebecca.

"What's going on?" she asked.

Rebecca just shrugged her shoulders.

"Well I hope everything is OK," said Casey.

"He's actually been kind of down since school let out," said Rebecca. "I know the first semester was really hard for him. It's just his way of de-stressing."

"Law school is pretty hard," Casey replied. "But Evan has always been focused and he's a smart guy. I'm sure he's doing fine."

Rebecca just nodded her head and there was a brief silence between the girls.

"I'm not sure if I should mention anything or not," said Rebecca hesitantly. "But I sense something going on between you and Cap."

Casey sighed and looked away from Rebecca.

"Come on Case," said Rebecca. "Talk to me."

"We had a fight this morning," Casey replied. "It was over who was going to watch Cadence today. And you can see who won."

"I still had a good time today Case," said Rebecca.

"I know, so did I," Casey replied. "And I love my daughter more than anything in the world. But sometimes you just need to get away."

"I'm not a mother so I don't really know what you're going through," said Rebecca. "But I do know that it's no fun fighting with the person that you love."

"It's not," said Casey with a half smile.

"So that's why I'm going to go to bed and let you two talk," said Rebecca. "I'll see you in the morning."

Rebecca didn't even let Casey reply. She turned quickly and headed up the stairs. Casey also went upstairs once she heard the guest room door shut. She went to Cadence's room and found Cappie sitting in the rocking chair holding her.

"Everything OK?" she asked standing in the doorway.

"Yeah," Cappie replied. "I tried to put her down and she woke up so I'm just here rocking her back to sleep."

Casey went up to the two of them and kissed Cadence goodnight.

"Rebecca and Evan went to bed," she said walking towards the door. "I'll be in our room."

"OK," was all Cappie replied as Casey walked out of the room.

Casey changed into her pajamas and climbed into bed. And she waited. Fifteen minutes had gone by and Cappie still hadn't come back into the room. She began to get upset and started to feel tears swell up in her eyes. She could tell he was still upset with her by the way he was real short when talking to her in the baby's room. Maybe he had gone to sleep on the couch? Casey was about to get out of bed and go find Cappie when he came walking in the room. They met eyes and stared at each other as Cappie shut the door.

"Can we talk?" Casey asked sitting up in bed.

Cappie continued to stare into her eyes but did not speak.

"Please," Casey said trying not to sound too choked up.

Cappie took a deep breath and sat next to her on the bed.

"So how was golf?" Casey asked after a brief silence.

Cappie just turned and glared at her.

"Sorry," said Casey looking at the ground. "I just don't know what to say."

"Well that makes two of us," Cappie replied with a sigh.

"I'm just hurt Cap," said Casey. "All I wanted was a couple of hours to get out of the house and do something with my friend."

"I was hurt too Case," said Cappie. "Evan and I made plans first. You didn't even want to hear that."

"But you wouldn't hear me either," said Casey. "Neither of us was going to compromise on the issue. So you just took it upon yourself to make the decision and go golfing."

"I know," said Cappie softly. "I wish things could have been different."

"What do you mean?" Casey asked.

"Case, under normal circumstances I probably would have cancelled the golf outing or even just done nine holes and come home so you and Rebecca could have your time," said Cappie. "But today I just couldn't."

"You've lost me," said Casey as she looked at Cappie with a confused look.

"Evan needed to talk to me," said Cappie. "He needed time with me more than you needed time with Rebecca. I didn't mention it this morning because I didn't know what he needed to talk about. I wasn't going to get anyone worried if it was nothing."

"I knew something was up with him," said Casey. "What is going on?"

Cappie took a deep breath.

"Evan failed two of his law classes last semester," he said softly.

Casey put her hand over her mouth in shock. She didn't know what to say.

"It's really got him shook up," Cappie replied. "He's questioning whether he's doing the right thing in school and with his life."

"Does Rebecca know?" Casey asked.

"See that's the other part of his problem," said Cappie. "Since he failed the classes his parents have taken away their funding for him until he brings his grades back up."

"What does that have to do with Rebecca?" Casey asked curiously.

"Evan is supporting Rebecca right now," said Cappie. "He's paying the rent and all the bills. Without his parent's money he's not going to be able to continue to do that. He feels like he's letting Rebecca down."

"But he should just tell Rebecca," said Casey. "She gets plenty of money from her parents to support herself and Evan."

"I know," said Cappie. "That's what I told him."

"And what did he say?" Casey asked.

"I think I convinced him to tell her," said Cappie. "He said he's probably going to do it on the ride home tomorrow."

"He just needs to be honest with her," said Casey. "The fact that he's not telling her is hurting things more."

"I made him realize that today. He thought he was doing the right thing by keeping it from her."

"Well I'm glad you gave him good advice," said Casey. "He's lucky to have a good friend like you."

"I hope you don't mind that I told him he could borrow some money from us if he needed," said Cappie looking into Casey's eyes.

"No, I don't mind at all," said Casey. "We're always here to help out our friends."

Cappie just nodded his head and smiled at his wife.

"So I guess I should apologize for my attitude this morning," said Casey. "You were just trying to be there for a friend."

"And I guess I should apologize for not telling you why I really needed to go golfing with Evan," said Cappie taking Casey's hand. "I love you so much Case. It killed me today knowing that we were fighting."

"Me too," Casey replied. "Especially to think we were fighting because of our daughter. I feel like such a horrible parent."

"Hey you're not a horrible parent," said Cappie scooting next to her, bringing his face inches from hers. "Every parent needs some time away from their children. I don't blame you. You're here with Cadence every day taking care of her. I promise to watch her sometime in the next couple of weekends for you. You can go with Ashleigh and do whatever you want."

"Thanks honey," said Casey.

Cappie leaned in and gave Casey a kiss, leaning her back down on the bed.

"I love you," he said softly backing away from her.

"I love you too," said Casey. "And I'm sorry."

"It's OK," Cappie replied. "I'm sorry too."

* * *

**_A/N: Sorry for no update yesterday.....I'm actually out of town right now and got caught up hanging out with some family and friends I hadn't seen in a while. Hope you guys aren't too mad at me!_**

**_Next chapter is a cute one.....hope you guys like that Cappie and Casey's fight was quickly resolved with Cappie just being a good friend to Evan. Review :0)_**


	82. Every Word I Say

EVERY WORD I SAY

In mid-August Cappie had to go out of town for the weekend with Beaver. They drove to New York City for a ServeSafe certification conference. They were busy Friday, Saturday and Sunday morning with classes learning about new food preparation rules and regulations. Honestly, Cappie was bored out of his mind. And he assumed Beaver was too as he caught him sleeping during one of the last classes on Sunday. The two of them were very relieved when they headed home Sunday afternoon.

"Yeah, we're not doing that again," said Beaver as they got onto the highway.

Cappie laughed.

"No complaints from me," he said. "This was the first time I was away from Cadence for more than a night. I miss her like crazy."

"I could tell with the amount of texting you were doing with Casey during the conference," said Beaver.

"Hey, you were doing the same with Ashleigh so you don't have any room to talk," Cappie snapped back.

There was a brief silence.

"So have you heard from Evan or Rebecca? How are things going between them?" Beaver finally asked.

"I talked to Evan a week ago," replied Cappie. "He came clean to Rebecca about everything and she was very understanding from what he says. Now he's just trying to decide if he's going back to law school in the fall or not."

"What would he do if he didn't go back?" Beaver asked.

"He's already got a political science degree," said Cappie. "So he'll be able to find a good job somewhere. I told him to go ahead and start applying for jobs. If he found one that he really liked then things would work themselves out in the end and he wouldn't have to go back."

"Well I'm glad the two of them are OK," said Beaver. "It would have been weird to have one of the couples break up."

"Speaking of couples," said Cappie. "Anything new with you and Ashleigh?"

"I just can't believe it's been almost a year we've been together," said Beaver. "It seems just like yesterday we made out in the stock room at the restaurant."

"Dude you have no idea how awkward I felt walking in on you two," said Cappie with a laugh. "That was the last thing I thought I would see walking in there."

"What can I say? I took advantage of her vulnerability," said Beaver with a smile.

"How romantic of you," said Cappie also laughing.

"But seriously dude," said Beaver as he stopped laughing. "I think I'm ready to get serious with Ash."

Cappie turned and looked Beaver briefly before returning his eyes back to the road.

"What do you mean by that?" asked Cappie even though he had a good guess at the answer.

"I'm not saying I'm going to do it anytime soon," said Beaver. "But the thought of asking her to marry me has crossed my mind."

"Wow Beave," said Cappie. "So when do you think you'll do it?"

"I'm not even sure if I'm going to do it yet," said Beaver. "But I really missed her this weekend. It was so empty sleeping in the bed without her. That feeling kind of made me realize that I might want to spend the rest of my life with her."

"Aw Beave, you could have always climbed in bed with me if you were feeling lonely," said Cappie batting his eyelashes at him.

"Oh you have no room to talk," Beaver snapped back. "You're the one in the middle of the night moaning 'Casey, Casey' in your sleep."

"I did not," said Cappie.

"You did," was all Beaver replied.

"Well if you need any advice or helping planning something, I'm here for you man," said Cappie.

"Thanks, I'll probably take you up on that," replied Beaver.

* * *

Meanwhile Casey was at home with Cadence. She was anxiously awaiting Cappie's return in a few hours. She picked Cadence up to take her upstairs to change her diaper when the phone rang.

"Hey Ash," she said reading the caller ID.

"Hey Case," said Ashleigh sadly.

"What's wrong?" asked Casey as she climbed the stairs.

"I'm just lonely and bored," said Ashleigh with a sigh.

"The boys should be home in a few hours," said Casey. "Why don't you come over here and we can hang out until they get home?"

"I can't," Ashleigh replied. "I've got some work I have to finish up. I just can't seem to concentrate because it's so quiet around here."

"You could always take Cadence," said Casey with a laugh. "She's always babbling some kind of jibberish out of her mouth."

"I'll pass," said Ashleigh with a laugh.

"Well I hate to let you go, but I just brought Cadence upstairs to change her diaper," said Casey.

"That's OK, I understand," Ashleigh replied. "Thanks for talking with me for a couple minutes at least."

"Anytime," said Casey as she placed Cadence on the changing table. "We should do lunch sometime this week. Let me know if you're available."

"OK, I'll call you."

"Bye Ash," said Casey as she hung up the phone.

She looked down at Cadence who was now on her knees on the changing table.

"You, missy, have to lie down so I can change your diaper," said Casey.

Cadence reached out for her mom. Casey leaned in and put her face near Cadence's hands as Cadence pushed her mom's cheeks together and laughed.

"You're a silly girl," said Casey as she picked Cadence back up and laid her down on the changing table.

Casey reached down to get a new diaper under the changing table when Cadence once again got up on her knees. She crawled her way over to the table next to the changing area.

"Cadence," said Casey in a frustrating tone as she saw she had moved again.

Cadence pointed to a picture on the table.

"Da-da," she said softly.

"Yeah, that's your—," Casey began to say back but stopped suddenly when she realized what had just happened.

Cappie had insisted a picture of him be put in her room while he was gone. He was afraid Cadence was going to forget who he was since he was going to be gone for three days. But with what just happened Casey realized how much her daughter missed her father.

"Da-da," said Cadence again continuing to point to the picture.

Casey about fell on the floor when she heard her say it again.

"Where did you learn to say that?" she asked laying Cadence back down to change her diaper.

Casey wanted so badly to pull out her phone and call Cappie to tell him. But she realized that it would be much more special for him to hear it when he got home.

"How about ma-ma?" Casey asked as she changed the diaper. "Ma-ma."

Cadence just stared at her and smiled.

"I know you can do it," said Casey. "Say it for me. Ma-ma."

"Da-da," said Cadence back with a smile.

"No, ma-ma," said Casey becoming a little hurt her daughter wasn't anywhere interested in saying her name.

Casey finished changing her diaper and set Cadence in her crib.

"It's naptime for you," she said. "And hopefully when you get up da-da will be home."

Cadence smiled as she hugged one of the teddy bears in her crib. Casey turned on the baby monitor and headed downstairs to prepare for her husband's arrival.

* * *

Cappie dropped Beaver off at his apartment and then headed home to see his girls. He was so excited to be home. A huge smile came over his face as he pulled into the garage. As he got out of the car he turned and saw Casey standing in the doorway. Cappie didn't even bother grabbing his suitcase. He ran up to her, wrapped his arms around her tightly and gave her a very passionate kiss.

"I missed you so much," he said as he backed away.

"I missed you too," said Casey as she leaned in and kissed him again.

"Mmmmm," Cappie moaned as he kissed her back.

Casey finally broke away and let Cappie into the house.

"So what did you do this weekend?" he asked putting his keys on the counter.

"Nothing much," Casey replied. "Ashleigh came over Friday night and we just hung out. And the past couple of days I've been doing some housework and taking care of Cadence."

"You talk like such a housewife," said Cappie with a smile.

"Well isn't that what I am?" Casey asked smiling back at him.

"Cadence still napping?" Cappie asked sitting down on the couch.

"Yes, but I'm sure she would love for you to wake her up," Casey replied.

"Oh I think I want to spend a little time with my beautiful wife first," said Cappie pulling Casey down on the couch with him.

"No objections from me," said Casey softly as she straddled Cappie on the couch.

They began to kiss as Cappie reached his hands up Casey's shirt and softly caressed her bare skin. Casey began to unbutton Cappie's shirt as she moved to nibble on his earlobe. Cappie slowly picked Casey up and laid her down onto the couch next to him. He then went on top of her.

"What do you suppose we do Mrs. Cappington?" Cappie asked in a soft but husky tone.

Casey just pulled him close to her for more kisses. Cappie was about to remove her shirt when he heard something come from the baby monitor.

"Is she OK?" Cappie asked backing away from Casey.

"Yeah, she's just babbling," Casey replied.

"OK, so where were we?" Cappie said as he leaned back down to kiss Casey.

"Da-da."

Cappie instantly broke away from Casey and sat up.

"Did she--?" he asked almost speechless.

"Yes," Casey nodded slightly disappointed that Cadence had interrupted her alone time with Cappie. "She said da-da."

"Oh my god," said Cappie with a smile as he stood up and ran upstairs.

Casey ran up behind him as she pulled her shirt back down and straightened her hair. Cappie opened the door to Cadence's room. She was standing up at the crib and got the biggest grin on her face when she saw her dad.

"Da-da," she said again as she reached her arms out for him.

Cappie wasn't sure what to say as he went over and picked Cadence up from the crib.

"I figured this would be a nice surprise for you for when you got home," said Casey standing in the doorway.

"When did she first say it?" Cappie asked.

"When I was trying to change her diaper earlier today," Casey replied. "She pointed to the picture you left on the table and said da-da."

"Wow, I can't believe this," said Cappie as he sat in the rocking chair and put Cadence in his lap.

"Me neither," said Casey walking over to them. "I thought for sure I would get a ma-ma out before da-da."

"You'll get your moment Case, don't worry," Cappie replied.

"Maybe I should go on a trip for a weekend," said Casey jokingly.

"Hey, what can I say, she just missed me," said Cappie as he squeezed Cadence tightly.

Cadence began to squeal and giggle. She reached her hand up and grabbed Cappie's nose soon after.

"Da-da," she said as she squeezed Cappie's nose.

"You are such a good girl Cadence," said Cappie. "Yes, I'm your daddy."

Cappie could almost feel the tears swell up in his eyes as he heard her say it again.

"Come on sweetheart," he said as he stood up. "Let's go down and get you some dinner."

"You coming?" Cappie turned and asked Casey noticing she wasn't going with them.

"Yeah, be there in a sec," Casey replied forcing back her own tears.

Cappie didn't seem to notice as he continued to walk Cadence downstairs.

Casey sat down on the rocking chair and picked up Cadence's favorite blanket. She was trying so hard to not be hurt. Sure Cappie has always played an important role in Cadence's life. But he wasn't the one who carried her for nine months, he didn't have to wake up all hours of the night nearly as much as she did, he's not the one here making all of her meals and changing diaper after diaper. And yet, he's the one she recognizes first. Casey took a couple of deep breaths again trying to fight the tears from coming. She knew her time would come. She wiped the tears that had formed in the corner of her eyes before standing up to head downstairs. This was a happy time for Cadence and Cappie and she needed to share the happiness right along with them. Her time would come.

* * *

**_A/N: I liked how this chapter turned out.....so cute :0) More Beaver and Ashleigh next chapter! _**

**_Keep reviewing....I'm in need of some motivation because I only have two more chapters written at this point and I need to get writing more so I can continue to post every day!_**


	83. Fly

FLY

"What time is the party again tomorrow?" Beaver asked as he opened the safe.

"It starts at three," Cappie replied. "And you and Ashleigh better be there."

"Why the sudden threat?" asked Beaver as he turned to Cappie.

"Casey has been going nuts over this party," Cappie replied. "She's got every decoration imaginable. I keep telling her that Cadence probably won't even remember her first birthday party anyway but there is no arguing with her. And if you two don't show up, well, I don't even want to think about it."

"Don't worry bro, we'll be there," Beaver replied grabbing his coat. "Are you OK to close up?"

"Yeah, I just have to finish up some of these orders and then I'll be heading out," said Cappie.

"I'll see you tomorrow then," said Beaver as he made his way out of the restaurant.

Warmth hit Beaver as soon as he walked outside and he immediately took his coat off, realizing how warm it was for being October. He pulled out his cell phone and called Ashleigh.

"Hey babe, what are you doing?" he asked as she answered the phone.

"Just watching some TV, waiting for you to come home," she replied.

"It's a beautiful night," said Beaver. "Why don't you come down and we'll go for a walk."

"But it's almost midnight."

"So, I'll protect you," said Beaver with a smile.

There was a brief pause as Ashleigh thought about it.

"OK, you win," she replied.

"I'm about five minutes away," said Beaver as he walked towards the apartment. "Just meet me downstairs then."

With that Beaver hung up the phone as he realized why he had brought his jacket to work tonight: to carry the ring. Yes, about a month ago he had nervously gone to the jewelry store with Cappie to pick out the ring. It was a pretty painful experience because there were so many to choose from and he had no idea what she wanted. Beaver didn't want to include Casey in fear she may not be able to keep the secret. But when he became overwhelmed with all of the rings he had Cappie call her to see if she could give him some idea as to what to buy. She said Ashleigh liked the princess cut diamond which Beaver eventually realized was a square. He still wonders to this day why they just don't call it a square cut. Anyway, after an hour looking at ring after ring he finally narrowed it down to two. And then he had Cappie choose. Yes, it probably wasn't the best thing to do but he was desperate. Both rings were gorgeous and around the same price so it didn't matter to him which one was chosen. Cappie eventually chose the ring on the right which Beaver then promptly paid for the ring on the left. Hey, just became he let Cappie chose the ring doesn't mean it was the ring he was going to get!

So a month has gone by with Beaver trying to come up with the perfect proposal. He thought about just doing it in the apartment but realized it may be too much like Cappie's proposal to Casey so he vetoed that idea. Then he thought about doing it big, something like having 'Will you marry me Ashleigh' on a scoreboard at halftime at some sort of game. But who was he kidding? Ashleigh wasn't too fond of sports and ever since he quit the football team freshman year of college he wasn't that much into them either. So now he's to the point where he carries the ring around with him in his coat pocket, just in case the moment arises. He didn't just want to give it to her, Ashleigh deserves better than that.

As he approached the apartment building he slipped his coat back on so he didn't have to hold it while they walked. He leaned against the building outside waiting for Ashleigh while running his hand around the box inside his coat pocket. He wasn't sure if tonight was going to be the night or not. It drove him nuts trying to make it so perfect for her. But Beaver, unfortunately, was not a romantic like Cappie. Sure Cappie taught him some things over the years but he was still way behind his mentor.

"Are you OK?"

Beaver was shaken out of his thoughts as he saw his girlfriend in front of him.

"Yeah," said Beaver softly. "Just thinking."

"Well what were you thinking about?" Ashleigh asked as she hooked arms with Beaver and they began walking down the street.

"Just work stuff," Beaver lied. "Cappie reminded me of Cadence's birthday party yet again tonight."

Ashleigh chuckled.

"I have gotten like ten calls from Casey today," said Ashleigh. "I'm not sure what that girl would do without me."

"Well you're a good friend, anyone would be lucky to have you as their friend," Beaver replied.

"Aw thanks Beave," said Ashleigh as she leaned her head against his shoulder.

The two of them silently began to walk towards a park near their apartment building.

"Do you ever stop to think how crazy things have ended up with everything?" Ashleigh finally asked.

"What do you mean?" asked Beaver.

"I just think it's amazing to look back at where everyone was in college and where we are now," said Ashleigh. "You and I really didn't talk a whole lot in college and here we are now in love. And then you have Casey and Cappie who have a child. Time has just gone by so fast."

"It's not such a bad thing is it?" Beaver asked.

"No, not a bad thing at all," Ashleigh replied squeezing Beaver's hand. "I'm glad this crazy world has brought us together. I would probably be married to a cheater if it wasn't for you."

"Well you deserve so much better than that Ashleigh."

Ashleigh turned to Beaver and smiled as the two of the reached the park.

"Come on," said Beaver pulling her hand. "Let's go lay down."

"We can't just lay on the ground," said Ashleigh.

"Sure we can," said Beaver finding a good spot. "It's not wet or anything."

Beaver then sat on the ground and pulled Ashleigh down into his lap.

"See, you don't even have to touch the ground with me here," he said smiling up at her.

Ashleigh leaned in and gave him a soft kiss on the lips.

"Always my hero," she said pulling away.

The two of them sat there in silence for a few minutes. Beaver had his arms wrapped tightly around Ashleigh as she leaned her head on his shoulder. Eventually Beaver laid down so he could look at the starry sky.

"Come lay with me," he pouted to Ashleigh.

She smiled as she laid next to him resting her head in the nook of his arm.

"Aren't stars beautiful?" asked Ashleigh after another few minutes of silence.

Beaver laughed.

"What?" asked Ashleigh feeling his laugh was somewhat out of place.

"I think I may have a star named after me," he said continuing to lightly chuckle. "Some silly thing my mom did when my brother and I were kids. We got these little certificates that told us what star was ours and everything."

"I think that's sweet," said Ashleigh. "You're mom is always thoughtful."

"I thought she wasted her money," said Beaver staring into Ashleigh's eyes with a smile.

"That's not nice," said Ashleigh as she playfully hit Beaver on the chest.

"Hey look," said Beaver as he pointed towards the sky.

"A shooting star," said Ashleigh also looking up.

"Make a wish," Beaver said.

Ashleigh closed her eyes and secretly made a wish to herself.

"So what did you wish for?" Beaver asked.

"I can't tell you," said Ashleigh. "Cause then it won't come true."

"Was it about me?" Beaver asked raising his eyebrows.

Ashleigh sat up and looked at him.

"That's for me to know and you to never find out," she said playfully.

"Um, I don't think that's the way the saying goes," said Beaver giving her a strange look.

Ashleigh just rolled her eyes as she stood up.

"Come on," she said reaching for Beaver's hand. "We should head home now."

He didn't take her hand. Ashleigh began to turn around and walk away.

"Hey Ash," said Beaver as he sat up.

Ashleigh turned around and stood in front of Beaver.

"You going to take my hand now?" she asked holding it out to him again.

"I would take your hand forever," said Beaver softly looking up into her eyes.

"What do you mean by that?" Ashleigh giggled as Beaver took her hand.

"Look Ash," he said squeezing her hand. "I know I'm not the most romantic guy in the world. I've spent hours and hours racking my brain trying to come up with the perfect way to do this. But every time I see your beautiful face I almost become speechless. I'm so lucky to have you and I really want to spend the rest of my life with you."

"Beave, what are you trying to say?" Ashleigh asked him nervously.

Beaver took another deep breath. He positioned himself on one knee as he pulled the box out of his coat pocket.

"Ashleigh Howard, will you marry me?" he asked as he opened the box.

Ashleigh screamed. Yes, she probably woke everyone up in the neighborhood at one in the morning but she couldn't help herself. She brought her hands over her mouth to try and muffle the sound. Beaver just looked up at her and laughed.

"Are you going to give me an answer or just leave me hanging here?" he asked after she calmed down.

"I think the obvious answer is yes!" she exclaimed.

Beaver stood up and took the ring out of the box. He slipped it on her left ring finger. It fit perfectly.

"And it's a princess cut!" she said excitedly looking at the ring. "How did you ever know that is what I liked?"

"You should know I had some help," said Beaver with a wink as he wrapped his arms around Ashleigh's waist.

"Of course, where on earth would we be without Casey and Cappie," Ashleigh replied wrapping her arms around Beaver's neck.

Beaver dipped Ashleigh back and planted a passionate kiss on her lips. He backed away briefly and stared into her eyes.

"I love you," he said with a smile.

"I love you too," Ashleigh replied.

The two of them kissed again before heading back to the apartment. Most of the walk was silent but Ashleigh stopped Beaver and turned to him before they entered the apartment.

"Thanks for making my wish come true tonight," she said as she leaned in and gave Beaver a soft kiss on the lips.

"You're more than welcome," Beaver replied.

The two of them headed into the apartment, both with huge smiles on their faces. Neither of them had ever been happier and they couldn't wait to start the rest of their lives together. Beaver was actually proud of himself. It probably wasn't the most romantic proposal in the world but it was still pretty good. Better than he thought he was going to be able to do that's for sure. He couldn't wait to tell Cappie all about it. And he was sure Ashleigh couldn't wait to tell Casey either.

* * *

**_A/N: Sooooo.....what did you guys think?!?!?! Yay for Ash and Beaver :0) Hope you guys liked it._**

**_Next chapter is SUPER cute, can't wait to share it with you!_**


	84. One More Time

ONE MORE TIME

"Good morning birthday girl," said Cappie as he walked into Cadence's room the day of her birthday party.

Cadence was standing up in her crib, obviously ready for the day. Cappie went over and picked her up and sat with her on the floor.

"Now I think we should have a little talk," he said softly to her.

Cadence stared at her dad as she began to suck on her thumb.

"You're mommy has been going crazy over this party," said Cappie. "I need you to be on your best behavior and really show mommy how much you love her today. OK?"

"O-K," Cadence replied.

Cappie smiled knowing that Cadence really didn't know what he was talking about. But lately she's been repeating several short words she hears her parents say. Cadence got on all fours and began crawling around the room. She was pretty speedy when it came to crawling and was getting into more and more things around the house she shouldn't be in. Casey entered the room as Cadence pulled herself up to standing using the ottoman of the rocking chair.

"Ma-ma!" said Cadence with a big smile as she noticed Casey had walked into the room.

Casey always smiled when she heard Cadence call her ma-ma. She said it about two weeks after she called Cappie da-da and Casey couldn't have been more proud of her.

"Good morning my baby," said Casey as she bent down and gave Cadence a kiss on the cheek. "Are you excited for today?"

Cadence just cooed as she bounced up and down while holding onto the ottoman.

"I picked out a birthday outfit for her," said Casey walking over to the closet.

She pulled out a pink jumpsuit with a white undershirt. Cappie gave her a disapproving look.

"What?" Casey asked as she set the outfit on the changing table.

"I don't like it," Cappie replied. "She's going to look like a big ball of cotton candy in all of the pictures with that pink thing."

"I think it's cute," whined Casey.

Cappie got up off of the floor and went over to the closet.

"Now I think this is more appropriate," he said as he pulled out a cute little jean skirt and purple striped shirt."

Casey eyed the outfit.

"You know, that's actually not that bad," said Casey.

"Good, then this is what she's going to wear then," said Cappie as he replaced it with the pink outfit on the changing table.

Cadence began to make several babbling noises getting her parents attention. They both looked down and instantly became surprised that Cadence was standing on her own and not holding onto the ottoman anymore.

"Get the ball," said Cappie softly so Cadence couldn't hear.

Casey took Cadence's favorite toy out of the crib and held it out so she could see. Instantly Cadence became excited and realized how much she wanted to get the ball. The next thing the parents knew Cadence was taking a couple of steps towards them without any assistance.

"Good job Cadence," said Casey as she continued to hold out the ball. "Come and get it."

"Damn I wish I had the video camera," said Cappie realizing he was witnessing his daughter's first steps.

After about four steps Cadence lost her footing and plopped down to the ground. Both parents were waiting for her to cry but were surprised when she didn't. She just worked her way back into standing to continue her quest towards the ball. Her steps had a very wide base of support and she held her arms way out at her sides for balance. It was such a cute sight to see.

Casey scooped down and picked Cadence up once she reached her.

"I am so proud of you!" Casey exclaimed.

Cappie planted several kisses on Cadence's cheek. She just giggled away knowing daddy was proud of her new accomplishment.

"We will certainly have to video tape it the next time," said Cappie as he backed away. "That was so cool to watch."

"It was," said Casey with a smile. "And I'm glad you and I both got to see it together. That kind of made it even more special."

"Sure did, didn't it?" Cappie asked as he snaked his arm around Casey's waist.

He leaned over and kissed Casey on the cheek.

"I'll get her ready for the day if you want to take your shower and everything now," continued Cappie.

"Sounds good to me," said Casey as she handed Cadence over to Cappie and headed into the master bedroom.

Cappie was about to start changing her diaper when his cell phone rang.

"Hey Beaver," Cappie answered looking at the caller ID.

"I did it Cap," Beaver tried to say as calm as he could, containing his excitement.

"Did what?" Cappie asked not understanding what his best friend actually meant.

"You know, the thing," Beaver replied.

"Beave, I'm really not—OH!" it finally dawned on Cappie what Beaver meant. "You and Ashleigh are engaged!"

"You guessed right my friend," said Beaver.

"It's about time," said Cappie with a laugh. "But I am very happy for you Beave."

"Thanks," Beaver replied.

"So are you guys on your way over?" Cappie asked.

"We were going to leave here in about a half an hour," Beaver replied. "I just wanted to make sure that it will be OK to announce the engagement at the party today. I know Casey has done a lot of work and it's really a party for Cadence but—"

"You don't even have to finish," Cappie interrupted. "Casey is going to be more than happy for Ashleigh and I'm sure it won't even matter."

"Yeah, that's what I thought," Beaver replied. "But Ash wanted me to call and just check."

"Well stop checking and get your asses over here," said Cappie as he finished changing Cadence's diaper.

"Will do master," said Beaver as he hung up the phone.

About an hour later people started arriving at the Cappington house. Guests included Casey's parents, Rusty and Jordan, and several friends the couple had met through the restaurant. Casey was busily running around the kitchen setting all of the food out for the guests. The living room was decorated with several balloons, crepe paper and happy birthday signs.

"There's the birthday girl!" exclaimed Mrs. Cartwright as Cappie came walking downstairs holding Cadence.

Cappie passed Cadence over to her grandma and joined Casey in the kitchen.

"Do you need help with anything sweetheart?" he asked standing next to her.

"Um, I think I've got everything pretty much done," she replied.

"Well I must say that you did an excellent job. This place looks wonderful and the food smells amazing."

"Thanks babe," Casey replied.

The two of them kissed softly as Cappie went to go answer the door.

"Evan! Rebecca! How in the heck are you?" Cappie asked as they walked into the house.

"Couldn't be better man," said Evan giving Cappie a hug.

Rebecca ran into the kitchen to find Casey leaving the boys standing in the foyer.

"So how's the job?" Cappie asked.

"It's great Cap," said Evan. "I never saw myself as the business executive type but it's really something I enjoy doing."

"And Rebecca is OK with you not going back to school?" Cappie asked.

"She couldn't be more supportive," Evan replied. "And in the next few years I have the potential to be making as much as I would have made as a lawyer so there's really nothing to complain about in that instance."

"Well I'm glad that you are finally happy," Cappie said. "I was worried about you that morning we played golf. You were so stressed."

"I couldn't of done it without your advice man," said Evan. "I really owe you."

"You don't owe me anything," said Cappie. "Except maybe another round of golf. You really sucked that morning."

Evan laughed.

"You're on then," he replied. "I promise to kick your ass the next time."

Cappie laughed also as the two of them made their way into the living room where the rest of the guests were.

"Where are Ashleigh and Beaver?" Rebecca asked Casey.

"They should be here soon," Casey replied. "I'm surprised they aren't here yet."

A few minutes later the doorbell rang and Casey ran to answer it.

"Casey!" yelled Ashleigh practically tackling her with a hug as she rushed into the door.

"Well hello," said Casey taken a little off guard as she hugged her best friend back.

"I have the best news!" Ashleigh yelled as she backed away.

Casey's eyes grew wide as she grabbed Ashleigh's left hand.

"Shut up!" Casey yelled as she saw the ring.

"We're engaged!" Ashleigh said excitedly.

Casey and Ashleigh hugged and began jumping up and down.

"Well I guess she knows now," said Cappie entering the foyer with a smile. "Congrats again man."

Cappie gave Beaver a hug as the two girls finally calmed down.

"Congratulations Beave," said Casey who went over and gave Beaver a hug. "Welcome to the family."

"Thanks," said Beaver with a laugh.

The four of them made their way into the living room and made the announcement to everyone else present. Everyone cheered for the couple and even Cadence clapped her hands together excitedly. Ashleigh and Beaver had huge smiles plastered on their faces the entire rest of the party.

The party itself was very successful. Everyone enjoyed the food Casey had made and had a great time mingling with all of the guests. At one point Cadence sat in her highchair with her first piece of birthday cake. She got more of the cake on her face then in her mouth. Cappie excitedly shot several pictures of his daughter with the cake all over her face. Cappie's parents also called during the party. They were sorry they couldn't make it but made a point to check in and make sure everything was well.

Once everyone left Cappie gave Cadence a bath and put her to bed. Casey was finishing things up in the kitchen when he came downstairs.

"Cadence was out like a light," he said sitting on the couch in the living room. "I think all of the excitement from today wore her out."

"I know exactly how she feels," said Casey coming over and plopping down on the couch next to Cappie.

Cappie put his arm around Casey as she snuggled up next to him.

"Hard to believe it's been a year," said Cappie kissing the top of Casey's head.

"I know," Casey replied. "This year has really just flown by."

"I really couldn't be happier though," said Cappie. "I truly do love my life."

"Me too," said Casey softly.

There was a brief silence between the two of them.

"Do you ever stop to think about how amazing of a little girl the two of us made?" Cappie asked.

"She's perfect," Casey replied looking up into Cappie's eyes.

Cappie took his hand and caressed Casey's cheek as he stared back into her eyes.

"I want more," Cappie said softly.

"More of what?" Casey asked.

"Perfection," Cappie replied, continuing to stare into Casey's eyes.

All of the expression came out of Casey's face as she thought about where Cappie was going with this.

"Are you saying…." Casey drifted off.

"I'm saying, as long as it's OK with you, that I could see us having another child," Cappie interrupted leaning a little closer to Casey.

Casey's face turned into shock with Cappie's words.

"Do you think we're ready?" she asked.

"Well we sure weren't ready with the first one," said Cappie. "And look out how well that turned out."

Casey paused and thought about it briefly. She looked up into Cappie's eyes again and instantly plunged her lips against his and reached her hands up and ran them through his hair. After a minute Cappie pushed her away and stared into her eyes with a slight grin on his face.

"I take it you feel the same way?" he asked pulling her closer to him.

"Yes," Casey replied moving her lips towards his ear. "And there is no time like the present to start."

Cappie's grin turned into a large smile as he leaned Casey back onto the couch. She was right, there was no time like the present to start.

* * *

**_A/N: So I've read this chapter like five times (heck I even wrote the dang thing) and I still get all giddy reading the last part. LOVE IT!! Hope you guys did too :0)_**

**_Happy New Year everyone! Thanks for reading!_**

**_Oh and Michelle--thank you for the wonderful comment....I really appreciate it and hope you keep reading and liking the story!_**


	85. Look at You

LOOK AT YOU

Cappie and Casey had tried for the next two months to get pregnant. When Casey got her period after the first month they each became a little discouraged. Why had it been so easy for them to get pregnant the first time? Maybe it was because they were planning and trying too hard this time around. They both eventually decided to stop consciously trying to get pregnant and let nature take its course.

Ashleigh and Beaver decided to have a short engagement and their wedding is set for April 21st 2012, right before Evan and Rebecca's which is planned for June. It was the week before Christmas and Casey and Ashleigh were out dress shopping for the bride-to-be.

"I can't believe you're getting married Ash," said Casey as she looked at her best friend in a beautiful Vera Wang gown.

"I can't believe you and Cappie are trying to have another child," Ashleigh rebutted jokingly.

"Hey now, this is your day. We're not supposed to be talking about me," Casey replied with a laugh. "But I will apologize ahead of time if I have a baby bump walking down the aisle as your wedding."

Ashleigh just smiled happily at Casey.

"So what do you think of this dress?" asked Ashleigh as she turned around in front of the mirror.

"I think it's really gorgeous on you," Casey replied. "But I'm still in love with the first one you tried on. It's like that dress was made for you."

"Maybe I should try that one on again."

"I think you should," Casey replied.

Ashleigh stepped off the pedestal she was standing on and went back into the dressing room with the attendant who was helping her put the dresses on. Casey's cell phone rang as she waited for Ashleigh to put the dress on.

"Hey my handsome husband," she answered the phone.

"Well hello my beautiful wife," Casey replied with a laugh. "What are you guys up to?"

"Ash is in the dressing room trying on her favorite dress again," Casey replied. "I'm hoping it's going to be the one she ends up getting. What are you up to?"

"Well I just wanted to call and let you know I'm going to drop Cadence off as your parent's house for the night."

"Why?" Casey asked.

"Because Beaver and I need to do some Christmas shopping. And I was hoping you and I could share a nice night at home alone."

"Mmmm, sounds good," said Casey with a smile. "Tell mom I'll come and get her in the morning sometime."

"No need," Cappie replied. "Rusty is in town for Christmas break and he said he was going to bring her back over to our house tomorrow afternoon. He was going to stop by to hang out with us anyway."

"Oh, well that works out well then," stated Casey.

"So do I have a date with you tonight Mrs. Cappington?" Cappie asked softly.

"I'm all yours," Casey replied. "But I have to go now. Ash is coming out in the dress."

"Beaver and I should be done shopping sometime this evening," Cappie replied. "I'll see you later."

"Bye hun, love you."

"Love you too," Cappie replied as he hung up the phone.

"Alright, here I come," said Ashleigh as she walked out of the dressing room.

Seeing Ashleigh in the dress took Casey's breath away for the second time. She watched Ashleigh step up onto the pedestal and look at herself in the mirror. The dress was a strapless a-line made completely of satin. The top was fitting with a sweetheart neckline and a strap of beading around her natural waistline. It had a pick-up skirt which was much fuller compared to some of the other dresses she had tried on. Casey eventually stood up and walked over towards her. She began walking around her looking at all the details of the dress and marveling at just how perfect the dress was for Ashleigh. She then felt tears form in her eyes.

"Oh no Case, don't cry. You're going to make me cry," said Ashleigh as she had tears form in her eyes also.

"I'm sorry," Casey replied reaching for a tissue. "You just look so beautiful in this dress. It was like it was made for you."

"You're right," said Ashleigh glancing in the mirror one last time. "This is the dress."

"Yay!" exclaimed Casey as she gave her best friend a hug.

Ashleigh was then measured for the dress and had to put a rush order on it since it was only four months until her wedding. The two girls looked briefly at bridesmaid dresses but decided to hold off until they had Rebecca with them to help pick out the dress too.

"I should probably call Beaver," said Ashleigh as the two of them got into the car. "He's probably wondering where I'm at."

"He's shopping with Cappie," said Casey. "Cap called while you were in the dressing room. He said they should be home this evening. He dropped Cadence off at my parents so the two of us could have a romantic evening by ourselves."

"Oooo, sounds hot," said Ashleigh with a smile. "Maybe the next Cappington baby will be made tonight."

Casey just turned to look out the window.

"Uh, did I miss something?" Ashleigh asked.

"Ash, I think I might already be pregnant," Casey said. "I'm not due to start my period for another week but there is just something inside me that feels pregnant."

"Well let's go and get a test then," said Ashleigh. "We did the first one together. No need to break tradition."

"Are you sure?" Casey asked smiling at Ashleigh.

"Positive," Ashleigh replied. "Now let's go to the drug store and you can take the test at my apartment when you drop me off."

"OK," said Casey as she switched lanes so she could pull into the drug store.

About twenty minutes later the two girls found themselves sitting at Ashleigh's dining room table waiting for the test to finish processing.

"You should go look," Ashleigh finally said. "I think it's done."

Casey stood up and walked into the bathroom. She then screamed and came running out of the bathroom.

"I'm pregnant!" she yelled as her and Ashleigh embraced and jumped up and down.

"Yay I'm so excited for you!" exclaimed Ashleigh as she backed away from Casey.

"Much different reaction than the last time huh?" said Casey with a small laugh.

"Yeah, that's for sure," Ashleigh replied.

"I guess we'll have to find a dress I'll look cute in with a baby bump," said Casey with a sigh.

"Hey, it's not a big deal," said Ashleigh. "It's not like you can put off being pregnant just for my wedding. We'll make it work. I guess I'll just have to cross your name off the bar list through."

Casey laughed.

"Yeah, just soda pop and water for me," she said looking at her watch. "I should probably get going home now. I have to figure out how I'm going to tell Cappie."

"Good luck," said Ashleigh standing and giving Casey a hug. "I'm sure he'll be just as happy as you are."

"Thanks for the support Ash," said Casey returning her hug. "I don't know what I would do without you."

"Anytime," Ashleigh replied as she walked her best friend to the door.

"I'll call you tomorrow," said Casey as she walked out the door.

Casey got into her car and was home about a half an hour later. She sat on the couch for a while taking in exactly what was going on. She was almost in shock that she was pregnant again. And while she was very happy, she was also worried at the same time thinking about all of the morning sickness and backaches and swollen feet she had to look forward to. But she wasn't going to think about that at this time. It was time for her to be happy and share that happiness with her husband.

About an hour later Cappie came walking into the kitchen with several bags in his hands.

"What did you do? Buy the whole store?" Casey asked looking at all the bags.

"No, just half of it," Cappie joked as he set the bags on the kitchen table.

"Anything in here for me?" Casey asked snooping through the bags.

"Hey, get out of there," said Cappie playfully slapping her hand out of the way. "Most of this is for Cadence but yes, there are a couple of things in there for you."

Casey backed away from the bags with her hands in the air.

"There is one bag you can look in," said Cappie searching around for the particular bag he was looking for. "I stopped by Olive Garden and picked up some dinner."

Cappie found the bag and handed it to Casey. Casey just took it and set it back down on the table.

"Everything in there can be put in the microwave if we don't eat it right away right?" she asked closing the distance between her and Cappie.

"Of course," Cappie replied with a smile as he grabbed Casey's waist and pulled her body right up against his.

Casey wrapped her arms around his neck and began kissing the side of his neck. Cappie let out a soft moan as the two of them began walking over towards the couch. Casey finally broke away and took Cappie's shirt off of him and threw it to the floor. Cappie didn't waste any time either by unzipping the skirt Casey had on and letting it fall to the ground. The two of them were soon naked and Cappie backed Casey down onto the couch. He began to take his time and nibble on Casey's neck but she was not in the mood to take her time obviously as she moved his face to look at hers and positioned herself for Cappie to enter her.

"I want you now," she moaned as she kissed Cappie on the lips.

Cappie didn't have to be asked twice. He went right inside of her as she let out a deep moan which turned him on even more.

"Is that what you wanted?" he asked in a low, seductive tone.

Casey just nodded her head yes as she dug her fingers into his back, continuing to moan louder. Soon after they were finished and laying next to each other on the couch in a tangle of limbs.

"I will never get tired of making love to you," said Cappie as he squeezed Casey a little tighter.

"Well you might as well get your time in now," said Casey with a smile. "Because before you know it, making love is going to be off-limits."

"What do you mean?" Cappie asked shooting her a confused look.

Casey turned so she could look right into his eyes.

"What I mean is that eight to nine months from now, you won't be able to be having sex with me," she replied, still smiling.

"Case, are you saying what I think you're saying," asked Cappie as a smile grew on his face too.

"I took a test earlier today," she said nodding her head yes. "We're going to have another baby."

"Oh my gosh that's wonderful news," said Cappie with a gasp. "I am so happy."

"Me too," Casey replied leaning forward and kissing her husband on the lips. "I love you."

"I love you too," he replied. "Wow, I can't believe we're going to have another baby. I hope it's a boy. But I'll be fine with another girl too. Just as long as she's as perfect as Cadence."

"How about I make my doctor's appointment to actually confirm the pregnancy before we get into all that," said Casey.

"Why? Do you think you might not be pregnant or something?" Cappie asked.

"It's not that," Casey replied shaking her head. "I feel like I'm pregnant. It's just that I haven't missed my period yet. I took one of those 'know before your missed period' tests and the line was fainter than what I remembered. So I just want to get to the doctor just to be sure."

"OK, that's fine," said Cappie kissing her on the forehead.

"I'll call the doctor tomorrow and see when I can get in," Casey stated.

"Let me know and I'll be there," said Cappie. "But for now my stomach is growling. I think we should heat up dinner."

"Sounds good," Casey replied standing up and grabbing for her clothes.

"Aw, you're not going to walk around naked?" Cappie pouted.

"But it's cold," Casey whined.

Cappie stood up and put his arms around her.

"Are you cold now?" he asked winking at her.

Casey just laughed as the two of them walked into the kitchen to have dinner.

* * *

**_A/N: For those wondering what Ashleigh's dress looks like I put a link to it in my profile. I tried to also put a link up for Casey's dress from when she married Cappie but I couldn't get it to work but I did write instructions on how to look at the dress if you're interested in seeing it. Thanks for the reviews on the last chapter....glad you guys liked it as much as I did :0) In the next chapter Cappie and Casey go to the doctor for the new baby._**


	86. Sometimes

SOMETIMES

Casey had to wait a little while to get into Dr. Snyder's office since it was around the holidays. But she was able to get an appointment right after the New Year.

"Wow, I sure missed this place," said Cappie as they walked into the office and Casey signed in.

Casey was called back to the exam room right away. The nurse checked her vital signs and took some blood as Cappie sat patiently in one of the chairs off to the side.

"The doctor should be in soon after the blood is analyzed," the nurse stated as she walked out of the room.

"So, are you nervous?" Cappie asked standing up and walking over towards Casey.

"A little," Casey replied. "But I still haven't gotten my period so I'm pretty sure I'm pregnant. I even got a little morning sickness a couple of days ago."

"Oh man, I forgot about all that," Cappie said with a sigh.

"Hey, you weren't even around for the worst of it," Casey replied. "The morning sickness was pretty much gone by the time I told you about Cadence."

"I wasn't talking about morning sickness," said Cappie. "I was reliving all of the cravings and backaches and massages I had to give you."

"I'd like to see you try and be pregnant. It's no easy ride," Casey replied looking at the ground.

"I didn't mean to say that in a negative way," said Cappie taking Casey's hand. "You know I'm here for you through everything Case. And I would give you a million massages if that is what it would take for you to feel better. I'll be even more supportive during this pregnancy than the last one. I promise."

"Thanks Cap," said Casey as she leaned forward and gave Cappie a soft kiss on the lips.

Cappie walked back over towards the chair and had a seat as there was a knock at the door.

"Casey, it is so good to see you," said Dr. Snyder as she entered the room and shook Casey's hand. "I see you're back for round two?"

"Yeah, I guess so," Casey replied with a smile.

Dr. Snyder shook Cappie's hand and said hello before sitting down on her stool. She opened Casey's chart and looked at her lab work.

"Well based on your hormone levels I would say that you are indeed pregnant," Dr. Snyder stated.

Casey turned to Cappie and smiled happily. He returned her smile before turning his gaze back to the doctor.

"Can you tell how far along she is?" Cappie asked. "Because last time we knew the exact date she was conceived. And well, this time, we have multiple dates to consider if you get what I'm saying."

Dr. Snyder let out a small laugh at Cappie's remark.

"I can take a guess right now and say that you're about three or four weeks along based on your hormone levels," she stated. "But I'll be able to get a better idea once we do an ultrasound in the next few weeks."

"You're not going to do one today?" Cappie asked.

"No, the baby at this point is too small to really see anyway," she replied. "I usually like to wait until the mother is at least ten weeks or so to do the first ultrasound."

"Oh, OK," Cappie replied.

"Casey, it's important to continue the things you did with the last pregnancy," Dr. Snyder said turning to her. "That is no alcohol or smoking and to start taking some prenatal vitamins and making sure you are getting enough nutrients in your diet."

"Not a problem doctor," said Casey. "I already started on the vitamins."

"Excellent," Dr. Snyder replied. "I guess I'll see you in about six weeks then. Feel free to call me if you have any questions or problems."

"I will," Casey replied.

The three of them headed out of the exam room and Casey scheduled her next appointment. She turned to Cappie once they got into the Jeep.

"Well, this is it," she said. "We are really going to have another baby."

"We sure are darling," Cappie replied. "And I couldn't be happier."

He kissed Casey on the cheek as the two of them headed over to Beaver and Ashleigh's apartment to pick up Cadence. Ashleigh and Beaver were just as happy to hear the news of the confirmed pregnancy and the five of them went out to lunch to celebrate.

* * *

The next week brought several not so good memories back to Casey as she spent most of her days in front of the toilet with morning sickness. Things were a little more difficult this time around, however, because she also had Cadence to take care of. With the holiday season ending Cappie had to be at the restaurant more to count stock and finish up end of the year reports. He was there for Casey when he could though holding back her hair and rubbing her shoulders trying anything to make her feel better. Casey honestly thought things were going to be better this time around. She read online that a lot of women didn't get as sick the second time around with pregnancy and she thought she would be one of the lucky ones. But that wasn't the case. In fact, she almost felt like this time was worse than the last. She was still feeling awful when Cappie came home later in the afternoon. He told her to go up and take a nap while he took care of Cadence.

Cappie at first had Cadence in her playpen but she was getting fussy because she wanted to move around more. She was walking everywhere now and had to be watched closely so she didn't get into anything she wasn't supposed to be in. Cappie took her out and watched her closely as she walked around the living room and played with several toys. He couldn't believe how beautiful his daughter looked. As much as he hated to admit it, she looked exactly like him. She had more of his features than she did Casey's. He felt bad sometimes because everyone commented on how much she looks like him. People rarely commented on how Cadence looked like Casey which he was sure made her feel bad. Cadence had the same piercing blue eyes he had. Her hair also had grown fast as the natural brunette curls flowed down just past her neckline. Cadence was a thin baby but she certainly had the chubbiest cheeks he had ever seen. He kissed her cheeks all of the time. It was like they were just begging to be kissed with as cute as she was. He couldn't really tell if she was going to be a tall or a short girl but he figured she would have to be one way or the other since he was six foot one and Casey was five foot three. At this point she came up to his knee when she was standing up straight. It was amazing to see the number of his features he saw in her. He could stare at his daughter for hours and seeing her walk around made him even more excited for the new baby. He just wished Casey didn't have to go through so much just to be pregnant. He really felt bad for her and it really had only been a week of going through it. He knew the next eight months were going to be hard on her and he was serious when he told her he would be there for her as best as he could.

It was about an hour later and Cappie hadn't heard from Casey. He picked Cadence up and took her upstairs to wake Casey so she didn't sleep the entire afternoon away.

"Go ahead. Go get mommy up," he whispered as he set Cadence down in their bedroom and watched her run over to the bed.

The king size bed was a little too high for Cadence to climb up on so Cappie helped her up onto the bed.

"Ma-ma!" said Cadence as she slammed her body down against Casey.

Casey turned and stretched her arms up in the arm.

"Well hello my little alarm clock," she said bringing Cadence closer to her and giving her a hug.

"Feel any better?" Cappie asked as he came over and sat on the edge of the bed.

"Yeah, a little bit," Casey replied as she kissed Cadence on the cheek. "Thanks for letting me get a nap in."

"You're welcome," Cappie replied.

"Here, take this little princess while I go to the bathroom."

Casey handed Cadence over to Cappie and walked into the bathroom.

"You are such a big girl Cadence," said Cappie playfully throwing her up into the air.

Cadence just giggled uncontrollably. Cappie loved to hear his daughter laugh. He made sure he heard it just about every day. A couple of minutes later Casey walked out of the bathroom with a worried look on her face.

"What's wrong?" Cappie asked as Casey sat on the edge of the bed.

"I, I had a little spotting when I went to the bathroom," she said with a shakiness to her voice.

"Did you have anything like that before?" Cappie asked becoming concerned.

"I don't think so," said Casey as she continued to stare off into space.

"You should call the doctor," said Cappie handing her the phone.

"Ma-ma," said Cadence as she walked over and put her arms around her mom's neck, obviously sensing something was wrong.

Casey couldn't help but smile at her daughter's attempt to comfort her.

"Ma-ma's OK," Casey said kissing Cadence on the cheek.

Casey nervously dialed Dr. Snyder's number and spoke to the nurse who answered the phone.

"Can you describe to me what it looked like?" the nurse asked.

"It was brown, like dried blood. Nothing bright red or anything," Casey replied.

"And about how much would you say there was?" the nurse asked.

"Not much," Casey replied. "Just a couple of streaks when I wiped myself."

"Give me one second while I report this to the doctor Mrs. Cappington," said the nurse as she put Casey on hold.

Casey was surprised when Dr. Snyder got on the phone a couple of minutes later.

"Casey, a little bit of spotting at the beginning of pregnancy is OK," said Dr. Snyder. "It usually happens when the embryo implants itself into the uterus. Are you getting any cramping or pain?"

"No, none at all," Casey replied.

"Then I wouldn't worry about it," Dr. Snyder replied. "Keep a look-out for any increased spotting. But as long as you're not getting any cramping or pain you should be fine."

"OK doctor, thanks."

"You're welcome Casey. And you have my on-call number so call me if anything changes OK?"

"I will," Casey replied. "Bye."

Cappie was looking at her intently as she hung up the phone.

"Dr. Snyder said a little spotting is normal and that I shouldn't be worried unless I have some cramping with it," Casey told him.

"That's a relief," Cappie replied letting out a deep breath.

"Yeah, no kidding," said Casey standing up and picking Cadence up into her arms. "Let's go downstairs and start fixing dinner."

"Sounds good," Cappie replied as he stood up and put his arm around Casey. "I love you."

"I love you too," she replied as the three of them made their way downstairs.

* * *

**_A/N: Thanks again for the reviews everyone.....they certainly keep me motivated to write :0) Interested to hear your thoughts on this chapter. Next chapter will be posted tomorrow as usual._**


	87. Down

DOWN

It was about three in the morning the next night and Casey couldn't sleep. She had gotten a sharp pain in her abdomen about an hour earlier but it was very quick and she hadn't felt anything sense. She even went to the bathroom to check for more spotting but there was nothing. Her mind was racing and she wasn't sure what to do. With it being just a one-time thing she didn't feel the need to wake up Cappie and the doctor. Maybe she was just sleeping in the wrong position and it was her muscles telling her to move. But she was proved wrong about a half an hour later when the sharp pain came back. This time, however, it didn't go away. Casey quickly sat up on the edge of the bed and bent over she was in so much pain. She was also becoming dizzy and lightheaded.

"Cappie," she managed to grunt through her clenched teeth.

Cappie stirred but just turned over onto his side and didn't wake up.

"Cappie," Casey managed to yell a little louder.

"What?" Cappie whined as he opened his eyes.

"Help me," was all Casey managed to get out.

"Case, what's wrong?" asked Cappie as he sat up in bed trying to wake himself up from the deep sleep he had just been in.

"Oh it hurts so bad," Casey replied in a barely audible tone.

Cappie stood up quickly out of the bed and ran over to Casey and knelt down in front of her. She didn't look good at all. He noticed she was very pale and her skin was clammy.

"Honey, talk to me, what's going on?" Cappie asked in a frantic tone.

"The baby," Casey whispered. "Something is wrong."

"I'm more worried about you," said Cappie. "Come on, I'm taking you to the hospital."

Casey just shook her head as Cappie put his arm around her to help her stand up. But Casey didn't last long on her feet. Her legs gave out on her and she collapsed back down onto the bed.

"Call 911 Cap," said Casey. "I feel like I'm going to pass out."

Cappie frantically reached for the phone as Casey laid back on the bed.

"911 what is your emergency?" the operator asked.

"It's my wife," said Cappie frantically. "She's pregnant but in a lot of pain and I think she's very close to passing out."

"Is she breathing sir?" asked the operator.

"Yes, she's still awake at this point," Cappie replied. "She just can't stand or else I would take her to the hospital myself."

"And you're at 403 West Club Drive," said the operator verifying their address.

"Yes, please hurry," said Cappie. "Something is very wrong."

"I have the ambulance on its way," the operator replied. "I need you to stay on the phone with me until they get there. Stay near your wife and make sure she's OK."

"I'm right here baby," said Cappie softly as he sat on the bed next to Casey and moved her hair out of her face.

"Sir, do you know how to check her pulse?" the operator asked.

"Yeah," Cappie replied as he put his hand on Casey's wrist and searched for her pulse.

"I can barely feel it," he replied to the operator. "But it's there."

"Cap, it hurts so bad," whispered Casey as she grabbed her abdomen, tears streaming down her face.

"I know sweetheart, I know," Cappie stated. "Help is on the way."

A minute later Cappie heard the sirens down the street.

"I hear the ambulance," Cappie told the operator.

"OK sir go ahead to the front door and let them in," replied the operator.

Cappie ran down the steps and swung open the front door just as the ambulance pulled up to the house.

"They're here now," Cappie said to the operator.

"Alright, you can go ahead and hang up now. Just answer any questions the paramedics have and let them help your wife OK?" the operator stated.

"Yes, goodbye," said Cappie as he turned off the phone and set it on a table just inside the front door.

"What is going on sir?" asked the paramedic as he walked up towards the door.

"My wife," said Cappie. "She's pregnant and in a lot of pain and I think she's like minutes away from passing out."

The paramedics gathered their supplies and ran upstairs after Cappie. Casey was barely awake when the paramedics got into the room.

"What is her name?" asked one of the paramedics.

"Casey," Cappie replied. "Casey Cappington."

"Casey, can you hear me?" the paramedic asked her.

Casey slightly shook her head yes.

"I've only got a pulse of 48 and a blood pressure of 72 over 42," said the paramedic taking her vital signs.

"Are those bad?" Cappie asked in a worried tone.

"They are both very low for someone her age. Let's get some oxygen on her and an IV started," he instructed the paramedic taking her vital signs.

Cappie watched as they placed a mask over Casey's head. He could see her eyes were only half open. She was struggling to stay awake.

"Is she taking any medications sir?"

"Just a, uh, prenatal vitamin," Cappie replied.

"Any other medical problems?"

"No, not at all. She's always been very healthy."

"Guys we need to get her out of here fast," said one of the paramedics working on her. "I think she's losing blood from somewhere really fast."

Cappie observed two of the men scoop Casey's limp body up into their arms and walked her downstairs. They set her down on the gurney which was right outside the door and strapped her in.

"Are you coming with us?" one of the guys asked Cappie as they put Casey into the back of the ambulance.

"I can't," replied Cappie. "I have our daughter upstairs."

"Well we're taking her to Evanston," he replied. "And I suggest you get there as soon as possible."

With that the door to ambulance shut and Cappie heard them turn the sirens back on as they sped down the street. He stood there for a second watching the ambulance trying to grasp what had just happened. Everything had happened so fast. Casey was just fine earlier this evening. He couldn't understand how she could become so ill so fast. He finally snapped out of it and ran back inside the house. He picked up the phone and called the first person he thought of.

"Hello," Ashleigh answered in a very groggy voice.

"Ash it's Cappie," he said, his voice noticeably on the edge of tears. "I just had to call 911 and rush Casey to the hospital. Can you do a huge favor for me and come and pick up Cadence? I'm going to take her to the hospital with me right now but I can't keep her there."

"Cappie what happened?" Ashleigh practically yelled into the phone.

"I don't know," Cappie became choked up as he sat on the stairs. "She woke me up because she was in a lot of pain. And then she just became progressively worse."

"Oh my god, I hope she's OK," said Ashleigh.

"I'll update you when you get to the hospital," Cappie replied. "That is, if you'll do it?"

"Of course," Ashleigh replied. "Beaver and I will be there as soon as we can."

Cappie hung up the phone as he ascended back up the stairs and threw on a pair of jeans and a t-shirt as fast as he could. He hadn't realized he was in his boxers the entire time the paramedics were there. He had been too wrapped up with what was going on with his wife to even care. Cappie then went into Cadence's room. He was really surprised she hadn't woken up with all of the commotion that was happening tonight. He got out her diaper bag and packed some essentials and a change of clothes for Ashleigh and Beaver. He swung the bag over his shoulder and picked up Cadence from her crib. Cadence snuggled on his shoulder and barely woke up from her deep sleep. Cappie made his way downstairs, grabbed the car keys and put Cadence in her car seat. Cappie got into the car himself and had to take just a second. He took a deep breath and tried to calm down as best as he could. He knew things were not looking well for Casey and the thought scared him more than anything had ever scared him in his entire life.

He arrived at the hospital about ten minutes later carrying Cadence still asleep on his shoulder inside the ER.

"My wife Casey Cappington was just brought in by ambulance," he said to the secretary.

"Hold on," she said standing up. "I'll go and get a doctor for you."

A few seconds later a balding man in a long white coat made his way towards Cappie. He had a very serious expression on his face. Cappie could already tell things weren't good.

"Come with me," he said leading Cappie into one of the empty waiting areas.

Cappie sat in one of the chairs, still holding Cadence tightly in his arms. The doctor sat directly across from him.

"I'm doctor Marshall," he said shaking Cappie's hand.

"I'm Cappie and this is my daughter Cadence," Cappie replied.

"Your wife is in very serious condition," Dr. Marshall said softly. "She lost consciousness when they first brought her in here and we had to put her on the ventilator. Preliminary tests show she has some internal bleeding in her abdomen area. She is having her abdomen scanned as we speak to try and see where the bleeding is coming from. My initial guess would be it's probably something having to do with the baby. And if it is, it is unlikely we are going to be able to save the pregnancy."

"That's OK," said Cappie squeezing Cadence tighter trying to fight back his tears. "Just save Casey. I can't lose my wife."

Just then Dr. Marshall's beeper went off.

"She must be done with the scan," he said turning back to Cappie. "I'm going to go look at the results. I'll be back to let you know where we go from here."

"OK," was all Cappie could reply as the doctor rushed out of the room.

Cappie began to rub his hand up and down Cadence's back as he stood up and paced around the room. He couldn't believe this was happening. He had hoped this was all a nightmare but no such luck. What he was going through right now was very real and the only comfort he found was holding his daughter tightly.

A few minutes later Dr. Marshall came running back into the room with some papers in his hand.

"I need you to sign this consent form," he said in a hurried tone. "Your wife had an ectopic pregnancy and needs surgery immediately."

"Wait, what is that?" Cappie asked looking at the form the doctor just handed to him.

"It means the baby had attached itself to her fallopian tube rather than in the uterus. As the baby grew bigger it put more pressure on the tube and tonight it broke open causing her to bleed internally. Your wife will not survive unless she has this surgery."

Cappie quickly signed the form as the last words exited the doctor's mouth.

"Why is this happening?" Cappie asked as he handed the paper back to the doctor.

"I really can't get into that right now," the doctor replied. "I need to get scrubbed in to stop the bleeding as soon as possible. I'll have a nurse take you up to the surgery suite once we begin the surgery and you can wait up there."

"But—" was all Cappie was able to get out as the doctor rushed out of the room.

Cappie went over to the only couch in the room. He set Cadence down on it and sat next to her. He buried his head into his hands and began to cry. The news he had just received was like a stab to his heart. He felt helpless knowing Casey was fighting for her life somewhere in another part of the hospital.

"God Cadence, this can't be happening," mumbled Cappie as he leaned back on the couch. "Just when everything was going perfect. Something has to happen to mess everything all up."

Cadence continued to sleep, still oblivious to anything that was going on. Cappie sat there alone in his thoughts until Beaver and Ashleigh came rushing into the room minutes later. He quickly wiped the tears off of his eyes as he stood up. Ashleigh ran right up to him and wrapped her arms around him tightly.

"Have you heard anything yet?" she asked as she backed away, tears filling her eyes also.

"Nothing good," Cappie replied plopping back down onto the couch. "Apparently she had an ectopic pregnancy that ruptured one of her fallopian tubes and caused a lot of internal bleeding."

"Oh my god," gasped Ashleigh as she sank into the chair next to the couch.

"She's in emergency surgery right now," said Cappie. "I'm just waiting for a nurse to come to take me to the surgery suite to wait until the surgery is done."

"Cap, are you sure you want us to take Cadence? I'm not sure if I want you here alone with everything that is going on," stated Beaver as he sat next to Ashleigh and wrapped his arms around her noticing how upset she was.

"And I want to be here," stated Ashleigh through her tears. "I can't leave now."

"You're right, I don't want to be alone," said Cappie. "But Cadence doesn't need to be here. She's not old enough to understand what is going on with Casey. It would really help me out if someone could take her so I can worry about Casey and know that Cadence is being taken care of."

"Have you called Casey's parents?" Ashleigh asked.

"Damn. No, I haven't," replied Cappie.

He pulled out his cell phone quickly and dialed the number to the Cartwright home.

"Cappie? Is that you?" Casey's mom answered the phone softly.

"Yeah, it's me," Cappie replied. "I wanted to call and let you know Casey is in the hospital."

"What?!" exclaimed Mrs. Cartwright.

"She has an ectopic pregnancy that has caused her internal bleeding," Cappie continued. "She is in surgery right now to try and stop the bleeding."

"What hospital are you at?" asked Mrs. Cartwright.

"Evanston," Cappie replied. "Same place Cadence was born at."

"OK, we'll be right over," she stated. "Where's Cadence? Is anyone watching her?"

"She's here with me right now," Cappie replied. "Beaver and Ashleigh are here too. I called them over to take her but once they found out how serious Casey's condition is, they don't want to leave. So I guess at this point we're just going to keep her here with us and make sure she's watched by someone at all times."

"Alright well I'm going to go and get dressed now. Hang in there Cappie."

"I will," Cappie replied softly.

He hung up the phone and turned to Beaver.

"Do you mind calling Evan and Rusty a little later and filling them in?" he asked. "No need to wake them up now since they are so far away. But if you could later I would really appreciate it."

"Sure man," Beaver replied. "I'm here for you if you need anything."

"Thanks," said Cappie as he turned to look at Cadence who was still soundly sleeping.

A few minutes later one of the ER nurses came into the waiting room.

"I will take you up to the surgery waiting area now," she told them.

Cappie stood to pick up Cadence when he felt a hand on his shoulder.

"I got her," said Beaver as he leaned down and picked Cadence up.

Cappie nodded to him as he followed the nurse out of the room with Ashleigh and Beaver close behind. The uncertainty of everything was killing him. He said a silent prayer for Casey in the elevator going up to the surgery area. He knew God was on his side when it came to saving Cadence before. He could only hope God would be on his side for saving Casey too.

* * *

**_A/N: Don't hate me for having Casey's pregnancy fail :0( I have a method to my madness....promise. A lot of you seemed to already have a sense that something was going to be wrong with this pregnancy so kudos to you :0) Keep the reviews coming....I'm sure I'll get some interesting ones for this chapter._**

**_In tomorrow's chapter we will of course find out what happens with Casey.....sorry to leave you with a little cliffhanger here. Lots of heartwarming scenes in the next chapter with Cadence/Cappie, Ashleigh/Beaver and Cappie/Beaver. I think you'll enjoy it. _**

**_Greek's back three weeks from today!!! Woo Hoo!_**


	88. Rain

RAIN

The sun had come up and it was nearing nine in the morning. No one had heard anything about Casey. It was a very emotional moment when Casey's parents arrived. Cappie and Mrs. Cartwright embraced each other tightly as they sobbed in each others' arms for several minutes. It was like at that moment both of them reached an emotional peak thinking the worst about Casey. Mr. Cartwright even put his arms around both of them for comfort. All they had at the moment was each other as they silently prayed Casey would be OK.

Cadence woke up around nine.

"Da-da," she said sitting up on the couch.

Cappie walked over to her and sat next to her on the couch. He had been pacing over the past few minutes becoming more worried about Casey.

"Da-da sad," said Cadence noticing Cappie had been crying.

"Yes, daddy is sad," Cappie replied wrapping his arms around Cadence.

Cadence returned his hug by wrapping her arms around his neck and giving him a wet kiss on the cheek. This was the first time Cappie was able to smile a little bit. His daughter was so innocent and it warmed his heart a little knowing she was trying to make him feel better.

"Come on sweetheart," said Mr. Cartwright walking up to them. "Why don't I take you to the cafeteria to get some breakfast."

"Are you sure?" Cappie asked looking up at Casey's dad.

"Positive," he replied picking up Cadence. "I'm sure they have to have some pancakes or something mushy down there she can have."

"Thanks," said Cappie genuinely at Casey's dad.

"Bye-bye da-da," Cadence waved as Mr. Cartwright took her out of the waiting room.

Soon after Mr. Cartwright left with Cadence Beaver came walking back into the waiting room. He went over to Cappie.

"I just called Rusty and Evan," he said. "Evan is working all day but he said to keep him updated. Rusty is still debating on skipping his classes and making his way over here or not. If you ask me I think he's going to come but he said he would call us and let us know what he decides."

"Thanks for calling them Beave," Cappie replied with a sigh.

"How are you doing Cap?" Beaver asked putting his arm on Cappie's shoulder.

"I just can't believe we haven't heard anything yet," Cappie replied. "It's been over three hours. Even if they come and tell me she's doing OK and is still alive. That's all I need to know for now."

"I know man, I know," Beaver replied increasing his grip on Cappie's shoulder.

Beaver gave Cappie a hug and made his way over to Ashleigh who was sleeping on another couch on the other side of the room. He sat down and stroked some of the hair out of her face.

"Is Casey OK?" she asked softly as she woke up.

"We haven't heard anything yet," Beaver replied. "We're still waiting."

"What time is it?" she asked as she slowly sat up.

"A little after nine," Beaver replied.

"Well I hope we hear something soon," said Ashleigh in a worried tone. "How is Cappie holding up?"

"As best as he can I guess," Beaver replied looking over at Cappie talking with Mrs. Cartwright. "He's really hurting though."

"Beave, what are we going to do if something happens to Casey?" Ashleigh asked as tears started to stream down her face.

"Hey, let's not think about that right now," Beaver said wrapping his arms around Ashleigh. "Casey is a strong woman. I have no doubt in my mind she's fighting like hell in that operating room right now."

"You're right," Ashleigh replied as she buried her head into his shoulder. "I just don't know what I would do without my best friend. Just a couple of weeks ago we were dress shopping and having a great time. I can't believe this is happening now."

All Beaver could do was squeeze Ashleigh tighter trying to comfort her as much as he could.

"I can't take this anymore," said Cappie to Mrs. Cartwright. "I need to go find out what is going on."

Cappie got up and began walking out of the waiting room when he bumped into Dr. Marshall in his scrubs walking into the room.

"What is going on?!" Cappie practically yelled at the doctor in frustration.

"Cap, let him talk," said Ashleigh as she came up to stand by Cappie.

"Why don't we all sit down," said the doctor motioning Cappie and Ashleigh back into the waiting room.

Dr. Marshall took off his scrub hat as he sat down next to Cappie. All eyes were on him, yearning for him to let them know what was going on with Casey.

"Casey is out of surgery and in the recovery room," he said staring directly at Cappie. "She is probably going to be on the ventilator until tomorrow because she lost a lot of blood. We had to give her four units of blood during surgery just to keep up. She's probably going to need a few more over the next several days."

Dr. Marshall took a deep breath.

"I wasn't able to save the fallopian tube that had ruptured," he continued. "There was just too much damage from the pregnancy."

"Wait," Cappie interrupted, his breath caught in his throat. "Are you saying Casey is not going to be able to have any more children?"

"She still has one working fallopian tube," Dr. Marshall replied. "It is still possible for her to have more children. It just may be more difficult than it had been in the past."

"How did this happen doctor? We already have a child and we didn't have any problems with her," Cappie asked.

"I noticed she had some scarring on her right fallopian tube during the surgery," the doctor replied.

"She did have a cyst removed when she was a teenager," Mrs. Cartwright piped in.

"Then that explains that," said Dr. Marshall. "When there is a build-up of scar tissue the fertilized egg can get caught up which is my guess as to what happened in this case. Maybe your first child came from the other fallopian tube or she was just able to pass through the one with scar tissue just fine. There is no way of really telling."

"So, is she going to be OK doctor?" Ashleigh asked.

"Everything looks OK for right now," the doctor replied. "As I said, we're going to keep her on the ventilator for the rest of the day to give her body some time to repair itself. As long as we can get her blood levels up she should be OK."

"Thank you doctor," said Cappie shaking his hand. "Thank you for everything."

"You're welcome," Dr. Marshall replied standing up and walking towards the door. "You can see her once we transfer her to the intensive care unit in the next hour or two."

Mrs. Cartwright wrapped her arms tightly around Cappie as soon as the doctor had left the waiting area.

"She's going to be OK Cappie," she cried on his shoulder. "Our girl is going to be OK."

Cappie didn't reply. He just squeezed her tightly and ran his hand up and down her back. Several minutes later Mr. Cartwright walked into the room with Cadence.

"Is everything OK?" he asked seeing just about everyone in the room had been crying.

"Casey is out of surgery," Mrs. Cartwright stated. "She's doing OK but they have to keep her on the ventilator until tomorrow because she lost a lot of blood."

"How is my little girl?" asked Cappie as he wiped the tears off his face and reached for Cadence.

She dove right into her dad's arms and wrapped her arms around his neck again.

"Thank you sweetheart," said Cappie kissing her cheek. "Daddy needed that."

"She ate a good breakfast," said Mr. Cartwright as he put his arm around his wife. "We had some pancakes and Cheerios."

"Speaking of eating," said Mrs. Cartwright. "You should probably go and get something Cappie. We still have a while before we are going to be able to see Casey."

"I'll go with you," said Beaver.

"And I'll keep an eye on Cadence as long as you bring me some pancakes back," said Ashleigh reaching for Cadence.

Cadence loved Ashleigh. So she just jumped right into her arms.

Cappie hesitated as he looked around the room at all the eyes on him.

"OK, let's go," he said with a sigh.

Beaver put his arm around Cappie and the two of them went downstairs to the cafeteria. Both of them grabbed some food and sat at one of the tables in the cafeteria.

"That's really great that Casey is going to be OK," said Beaver after the two sat in silence for a while.

"Yeah, it's great," Cappie replied in a solemn tone.

"What's wrong Cap?" asked Beaver. "You don't sound too happy."

"That's not it," Cappie replied with a sigh. "I am more than happy that Casey is going to be OK. I just don't want to get my hopes up too fast. She still is on the ventilator. I learned to not think the best too quickly because you never know what can happen."

"I understand," Beaver replied.

The two of them sat in silience for several more minutes. Beaver noticed Cappie was playing with his food more than he was eating it.

"Cap, seriously, talk to me please," said Beaver trying to get Cappie's attention. "I know there is something else bothering you."

"I'm OK, really," said Cappie in a fake convincing tone.

"Cap, I'm your best friend," said Beaver. "I know when something is wrong."

"I don't want to talk about it because I'm upset about something I shouldn't be upset about," Cappie replied. "I should be ecstatic that my wife is going to be OK. But at the same time, I lost my child."

Beaver looked down at the table, unsure of what to reply.

"Of course you should be upset you lost your child," Beaver finally said. "Why would you think it's wrong to be upset about that?"

"Because it wasn't really even a baby yet," Cappie replied. "It wasn't like Casey was starting to show or that we saw the baby on the ultrasound or any of that. The only thing we had was a line on a stick and a blood test that said there was a baby inside of her. How can I be upset when I really didn't even get time to get excited about it?"

"Uh, because it's your child," said Beaver in a 'duh' tone to Cappie. "Regardless of whether the baby seemed real or not, you knew it was in her and that's all that really matters."

There was a brief pause between the two of them.

"You have no idea how much I want more children Beave," said Cappie finally looking up at him. "Cadence has brought so much joy into my life and the thought of having another child with Casey was something so exciting. I guess I'm just sad because Cadence is probably going to be our only child now."

"Now that's not true," Beaver replied. "You heard the doctor, Casey can still have children."

"How on earth can I ask her to have more children after everything she's been through Beave?" Cappie snapped. "She almost died. I know if I was her I would be scared out of my mind to even think about being pregnant again."

"Calm down Cap," said Beaver. "You are jumping to conclusions. Sure Casey is not going to want to get pregnant right away after all this happened. But you don't know how she is really going to feel until you talk to her about it."

Cappie just stared at Beaver. Suddenly defeat came over his face.

"You're right," Cappie sighed. "Sorry I snapped at you."

"It's alright," Beaver replied with a small smile. "That's why I'm your BFF. I can take it."

"Yeah," Cappie smiled back at Beaver.

The two of them finished up their meal in silence. Beaver then went outside to call Evan and Rusty and give them the update on Casey while Cappie made his way to the elevator to go back up to the surgery waiting area. He felt a little better since he got some food in him but his head was still spinning with everything that had been going on. He realized he was most nervous about having to tell Casey everything that happened. She was probably going to be even more devastated than him about losing the baby. He felt his breakfast work its way up at the thought of having to break the news to Casey. Thank goodness he had at least until tomorrow morning until he had to do it. It gave him plenty of time to prepare.

* * *

**_A/N: I just love Beaver as a character. He always seems to be the voice of reason for Cappie. Hope you guys liked all the scenes in this chapter. If I am able to get a lot of writing done tonight I may just post two chapters for you guys tomorrow :0) As always, thanks for the motivating reviews and I'm glad no one really hates me for doing this to Casey....LoL._**


	89. Soldier

SOLDIER

About an hour later they were all able to see Casey. Cappie made the decision to not have Cadence see her mom. He knew she would be scared seeing all of the tubes and wires hooked up to her mother so she just stayed in the waiting room with whoever volunteered to stay with her while others visited with Casey. It was really hard for them all to see Casey the way she was. She still looked very pale and had dark circles around her eyes. A few tears escaped Cappie's eyes as he grabbed her hand to let her know he was there. He eventually had to back away so the rest of the visitors could be with her. While they visited he stayed with Cadence in the waiting room allowing Ashleigh to go in and see her best friend.

After Mr. and Mrs. Cartwright spent a couple of hours with Casey they decided it was time to go home since there wasn't going to be any change in her condition until the morning. They took Cadence with them to stay at their house.

"We will be back in the morning," said Mrs. Cartwright giving Cappie a hug. "Call us if anything changes."

"I will," Cappie replied squeezing her tightly.

"Make sure you get some sleep yourself son," said Mr. Cartwright picking Cadence up off of the couch.

"I know," said Cappie. "I promise I will."

The Cartwrights said goodbye to everyone else and left the hospital with Cadence. Ashleigh made her way back into Casey's room to visit.

"You and Ashleigh can head out too if you want," Cappie said to Beaver as he sat down on one of the chairs in the waiting room.

"We're not leaving without you Cap," Beaver replied sitting next to him.

"I'm not sure if I'm going to leave," Cappie replied. "Maybe I'll just sleep here on the couch."

"I think you should go home," said Beaver.

"It'll be too weird," said Cappie shaking his head. "I've never been in that house completely alone overnight before. Casey or Cadence is always there."

"Ash and I can stay over if you want," suggested Beaver. "That way you don't have to be alone and we can be closer to the hospital if something were to happen to Casey."

Cappie took a deep breath as he thought about what Beaver said for a bit.

"I guess you're right," he stated. "I'm just going to see Casey one last time before we head out."

"OK," Beaver replied patting Cappie on the back.

Cappie slowly opened the door to Casey's room. He saw Ashleigh sitting next to her bed and holding her hand.

"Hey," Cappie said softly.

"Hey," Ashleigh replied.

There was a brief silence.

"I just came to say goodbye to Casey," said Cappie. "We're all going to head to my house to get some rest before we come back in the morning."

"Oh, OK," said Ashleigh standing up. "I'll let you be alone with her."

Ashleigh kissed Casey's hand before backing away and walking out of the room. Cappie sat in the chair Ashleigh had occupied and took Casey's hand into his.

"Hi sweetheart," he said softly as he squeezed her hand. "I just wanted to tell you that I'm going to head home now. Cadence is staying at your parent's house so she's well taken care of. I wish I could stay here with you all night but I know going home is going to be the best for me."

Cappie took a deep breath and kissed the back of Casey's hand.

"I'm really sorry this has happened to you babe. It's all like a horrible nightmare but the doctors said you should be OK. They are going to take that breathing tube out of you tomorrow and we'll be able to talk more about what happened. I love you sweetheart and you stay nice and strong for me. I will be back early in the morning."

Cappie stood up and leaned in to kiss Casey on the cheek.

"Sleep tight," he said squeezing her hand one last time before exiting the room.

Cappie met Ashleigh and Beaver in the waiting room and they made their way to the Cappington home. Once they were inside Ashleigh and Beaver went into the guest room and Cappie went into his bedroom. He stripped down to his boxers and climbed into bed. For several minutes Cappie tossed and turned trying to get comfortable. He eventually turned onto his side and rubbed Casey's empty side of the bed. He missed her so much. He didn't realize how hard it would be trying to sleep in the bed by himself knowing what was happening with Casey. It took him about an hour before he was able to fall asleep.

* * *

Cappie, Beaver and Ashleigh arrived back at the hospital around six the next morning.

"How did you sleep last night Cap?" Ashleigh asked as they got into the elevator.

"Took me a while to fall asleep," he replied. "I think I got a couple of hours but that was it."

"Yeah, same here," Ashleigh replied taking a sip of the coffee they had stopped to get.

They got off the elevator and went into Casey's room. A nurse was in the room at the time and explained to them that nothing had happened overnight except Casey had another unit of blood given to her. The nurse explained they were waiting for the doctor to make his rounds before determining when Casey would be taken off the ventilator.

It was another hour wait before Dr. Marshall came into the room.

"Good morning everyone," he said walking over to Casey's bed.

"Good morning," Ashleigh replied as they all stared intently at the doctor.

"Her blood levels still aren't where I would like them to be," Dr. Marshall said examining Casey's chart. "That's why we gave her another transfusion overnight."

"Does that mean she's still bleeding from somewhere?" Cappie asked.

"No," the doctor replied. "Her numbers are going up. Just not as fast I would have liked them to."

"Is she going to have to stay on the ventilator longer?" Ashleigh asked.

Dr. Marshall took a deep breath as he continued to examine the chart.

"I think we should be able to take her off now," he said. "I just want to check her incision and some other things over before doing so. Do you mind waiting in the waiting area."

"Sure," Cappie replied as he walked towards the door with Ashleigh and Beaver.

A couple of nurse's came into the room to assist the doctor as the three of them headed into the waiting room.

"I can't wait to hear her voice," said Cappie sitting on one of the chairs.

"Me too," Ashleigh replied. "I hope everything goes well."

"I'm sure it will," said Beaver putting his arm around Ashleigh.

Cappie pulled out his phone to call Casey's parents.

"Cappie?" Mrs. Cartwright answered the phone.

"Yes, it's me," Cappie replied. "How is Cadence?"

"Still sleeping," Casey's mom replied. "We were going to wake her up pretty soon though."

"I just wanted to call and let you know that the doctors are assessing Casey now to see if she's ready to come off the ventilator," said Cappie.

"Oh that's wonderful," Mrs. Cartwright replied. "We will be over as soon as we get Cadence up and fed."

"No rush," said Cappie. "We're not even sure if she's going to be able to get off the ventilator or not at this point."

"I know," Mrs. Cartwright sighed.

"I'll see you when you get here," said Cappie.

"OK, bye," she replied hanging up the phone.

About a half an hour later the doctor came into the waiting room.

"Casey is doing fine," he said. "We were able to take her off the ventilator but some of the sedation medicine is still in her so she's very sleepy right now."

"Everything else look OK?" Cappie asked.

"Yes, her incision is healing nicely," he replied. "We are going to keep checking her blood levels and she may need a couple more blood transfusions during the day but we'll just wait and see how she does."

"OK, thanks doctor," said Cappie shaking his hand.

"You're welcome," Dr. Marshall stated as he walked out of the room.

Cappie nervously turned to Ashleigh and Beaver.

"I think you should go on in by yourself first Cap," said Ashleigh. "She needs you the most."

"Are you sure?" Cappie asked. "I don't mind if you want to come too."

"No, go ahead," said Beaver. "The two of us will wait here."

"Thanks guys," said Cappie as he left the waiting room.

Cappie stood outside of Casey's door for a few seconds looking at her through the window. She looked a lot better without the tube down her throat. The nurses had put the head of her bed up which made her look much more alive. Cappie could tell her eyes were shut and he wasn't sure how awake she was going to be when he went inside. He took one last deep breath as he put his hand on the doorknob. A small smile grew on his face as he turned the knob. He couldn't wait to hear his wife's voice.

* * *

**_A/N: So I didn't get a whole lot of writing done last night but I can't leave you guys with Cappie just about to walk into Casey's room right????? So that's why I'll post the next chapter too :0) You can thank me with lots of reviews....haha. Oh and for any people who cry easily you might want to get some tissues....the next chapter is quite powerful between Cappie and Casey....just thought I would warn ya._**


	90. Cried

CRIED

Cappie walked into Casey's room and sat right on the edge of her bed. He didn't even bother looking at the chair he probably was supposed to sit in. He wanted to be close to his wife. He took his hand and brushed the side of her face. Casey fought to open her eyes. She was only able to get them open about half way. But that's all she needed to see her husband sitting next to her.

"Cappie," she whispered.

"Yes sweetheart, it's me," said Cappie, tearing filling his eyes.

"Cadence?" Casey whispered again.

"She's OK. She's with your parents right now. They should be here soon," Cappie replied.

Casey slowly brought her hand up and covered Cappie's which was still on her cheek.

"I feel like I've been hit by a bus," she said with a small smile.

"You've been through a lot," Cappie replied turning his hand around and taking Casey's into it. "Did anyone tell you what happened."

Casey shook her head no.

"Do you remember anything?" Cappie asked.

"The last thing I remember was being in a lot of pain and paramedics showing up to our house," Casey replied.

Cappie took a deep breath as he squeezed Casey's hand.

"You were bleeding internally," he began. "They had to put you on a ventilator when you got to the hospital and then you went into emergency surgery to try and stop the bleeding."

Casey looked at Cappie dumbfounded.

"How long have I been out?" she asked.

"Only a day," Cappie replied.

Casey let go of Cappie's hand and placed it on her stomach. She felt the incision across the bottom of her stomach. She immediately looked up at Cappie as tears filled her eyes.

"The baby?" she asked as a tear escaped her eye and ran down her cheek.

Cappie took her hand back into his.

"You had an ectopic pregnancy Case," he said looking right into her eyes. "The baby never made it to your uterus. And the more the baby grew the more pressure was put on your fallopian tube. The pain you got that night was when it ruptured, causing all of the bleeding."

A look of absolute horror came over Casey's face as more tears streamed down her cheeks.

"So, I'm , I'm not pregnant anymore," she asked, her voice cracking.

All Cappie could do was shake his head no.

"Oh my god," said Casey as she began to sob.

Cappie leaned forward and wrapped his arms tightly around Casey. Casey buried her head into his shoulder and wrapped her arms around him also. They sat wrapped in each other's arms for several minutes, comforting each other over the loss of their child.

"Did, did I do so-something wrong?" Casey asked backing away from Cappie.

"No, no you didn't," Cappie replied wiping the tears off of her face. "This isn't your fault."

"But why Cap? Why did this happen to us?" she asked looking down at the bed.

"I don't know," Cappie replied. "I can't answer that question. All I know is that things do happen for a reason. And we may not know that reason right now but sometime in the future we will understand why this happened."

"Cap?" asked Casey looking up into his eyes. "Can, can we still have children after all this? They were able to repair everything right?"

"They couldn't repair your one fallopian tube Case," Cappie replied with a sigh. "They had to take it out. But the doctor did say we could still have children in the future. It just may be a little more difficult."

Casey began to get choked up again.

"Casey," Cappie whispered as he wrapped his arms around her again. "I need you to not focus on that right now. I need you to focus on yourself for the time being. You are still pretty sick with all the blood loss that you had. Let's just please focus on you for a little while. I can't lose you sweetheart. I need you."

"I know," said Casey as she backed away and grabbed a tissue to wipe her eyes. "I'm feeling really tired already and I haven't even been up for that long."

"Why don't you go back to sleep then," said Cappie. "I'll go and let everyone know they can come in a little later."

Casey reached for Cappie's hand before he could stand up.

"Please stay with me," she said, tears still falling down her face. "At least until I'm asleep."

"Of course," Cappie replied.

Cappie held Casey's hand as he watched her close her eyes and quickly fall asleep. He headed back out to the waiting room after he knew she had fallen asleep completely.

"Cap! How is she?" Ashleigh exclaimed as soon as he walked into the room.

"She was up and talking for a little bit," he replied. "But she got really tired and fell back asleep. Sorry you guys didn't get to see her."

"It's OK man," said Beaver putting his hand on Cappie's shoulder. "We'll see her when she wakes up."

"Did she remember anything that happened?" Ashleigh asked.

"Not really," Cappie replied. "That was probably the hardest conversation the two of us had ever had. Casey is pretty devastated over the loss of the baby. It took me several attempts to get her to stop crying."

"Poor Case, I really feel for her," said Ashleigh.

"Da-da!" exclaimed Cadence as she came into the room with the Cartwrights and ran up to Cappie.

"Hey my little princess," Cappie said reaching down and picking her up. "I missed you. How about you give daddy a big kiss on the cheek?"

Cappie pointed to his cheek as Cadence opened her mouth wide and gave him the wettest kiss he had ever gotten. It made him laugh a little because Cadence still couldn't get the concept of putting her lips together for a kiss. They were always wide open.

"How are things with Casey?" Mr. Cartwright asked as he approached Cappie.

"She's doing well," Cappie replied. "They took her off the ventilator about an hour ago and I was able to go in and talk with her for a little bit. But she got really tired and is now taking a nap before we have more visitors come in."

"Were you able to tell her about the baby," Mrs. Cartwright asked solemnly.

"Yeah," Cappie replied with a sigh. "She didn't take the news very well."

Everyone was mostly silent after Cappie's last statement. They didn't know what to say.

About a half an hour later a nurse came into the waiting area to let everyone know that Casey was awake and ready to have some visitors. Ashleigh and Mrs. Cartwright decided to see her first.

"Mom," said Casey as soon as she walked into the room.

"Oh Casey," said her mom running over towards her and giving her a hug. "I'm so glad you're OK."

"Me too mom," Casey replied wrapping her arms tightly around her mom.

Ashleigh made her way over towards Casey once Mrs. Cartwright backed away.

"Casey," said Ashleigh as tears began to stream down her face.

"Oh Ash," said Casey as her best friend leaned down to give her a hug. "I'm so happy to see you."

"You're happy to see me?" Ashleigh asked backing away with a smile. "It should be the other way around. I'm happy to see you."

Casey let out a small laugh.

"How are you feeling honey?" Mrs. Cartwright asked sitting in a chair next to the bed.

"Still a little tired," Casey replied. "But a lot better than when I first got off the ventilator."

"We were pretty scared," said Ashleigh. "It's so good to see you awake and talking."

"Have you been able to eat anything?" Mrs. Cartwright asked.

"I have some water here," said Casey pointing to the jug next to her. "They said lunch will be here shortly and I'll have mostly soft foods like mashed potatoes and applesauce to see how I handle those first. I'm not worried though. I can't vomit any worse than I have been the past week."

Casey sighed and looked down at her stomach after she finished speaking. She missed the baby tremendously even if it did give her the worst morning sickness she ever had. She would have gotten through that for her child any day.

"You're going to get through this Casey," said her mom standing up and sitting on the edge of the bed opposite Ashleigh.

"Yeah," piped in Ashleigh. "We are all here to support you through this."

"Thanks guys," said Casey with a sigh. "I guess I'm even more sad because I know how much Cappie wants another child. And I'm scared because I don't know if I can go through a pregnancy again after everything that has happened. I doubt that I'm strong enough."

"Case, you are one of the strongest people I know," said Ashleigh. "It's understandable that you're not going to want to get pregnant right away. But you and Cappie make wonderful parents. Deep down you'll know when you're ready to have another go at it."

Casey smiled weakly at Ashleigh, not completely convinced with her words.

"Let me tell you something Casey," said her mom taking her hand. "I haven't told many people this but I was pregnant before I had you and Rusty. I was nine weeks pregnant and ended up having a miscarriage."

Casey looked at her mother in shock. She had no idea.

"It was a shock to me," her mother continued. "I cried for days wondering why it had happened to me. Everything had been going so well. My point is that I was certainly devastated for a while. But two years later I welcomed your beautiful face into the world. You wouldn't be here today Casey if I hadn't gotten over my fear of becoming pregnant again. The best thing is to try and just focus on yourself right now. Ashleigh is right; you will know when the time is right to try again. And Cappie is a wonderful husband. I know he will respect your decision to wait until you're ready. Just take it day by day."

Casey gave her mom a much more convincing smile that the words she just said to her really did make her feel better.

"I love you mom," said Casey giving her a hug. "Thank you for the words of encouragement."

"Anytime," Mrs. Cartwright replied.

Soon after their talk there was a knock at the door and the nurse brought in lunch for Casey.

"We'll let you eat and send in a couple more visitors," said Mrs. Cartwright standing and kissing Casey on the cheek. "I'm sure we'll be back in later to see you."

"Love you Ash," said Casey as she gave Ashleigh a hug also.

"Love you too Case," Ashleigh replied.

Casey was taking her first bites of her lunch when a very familiar voice made her smile.

"Ma-ma!"

Casey put down her fork as Cappie walked in the room holding Cadence.

"Now you have to be gentle with mommy," said Cappie setting Cadence down on the bed. "Mommy is sick."

"Ma-ma sick," said Cadence as she gently reached her hands up towards Casey's face.

"Come here my favorite little girl," said Casey as she wrapped her arms tightly around her daughter. "I sure missed you."

"I hope it's OK I brought her in," said Cappie staring at the two of them with a smile on his face. "I wasn't sure if I should or not."

"No, it's fine," said Casey as she sat Cadence next to her in the bed. "She can help me eat my yummy lunch."

Casey scooped up a small bite of her mashed potatoes and fed it to Cadence who ate it happily.

"Have you been out of bed yet?" Cappie asked.

"No," Casey replied. "I don't think they want me moving a whole lot with all the blood I've been getting."

"That's true," Cappie replied softly.

"Something wrong?" Casey asked as she took a bite of the mashed potatoes for herself.

"Nothing, I'm fine," Cappie replied. "Just happy to see my two favorite girls together again."

They both watched as Cadence used her hand to take some more mashed potatoes off of Casey's plate. It made them laugh as she probably got more mashed potatoes on her face than she did in her mouth. Cadence just giggled at what she had done.

"Here, let me help you," said Cappie as he picked up a napkin from Casey's tray and wiped off Cadence's face.

"Much better," said Casey when Cappie had finished.

As Cappie set the napkin back on the tray the two of them locked eyes. They each could see the sadness in each other's eyes but both managed a small smile.

"Everything is going to be OK Case," said Cappie leaning closer to her. "I promise."

Casey just nodded her head as Cappie softly brushed his lips against hers. She truly did have the greatest husband and family in the entire world. And she knew everything was going to be OK as long as they had Cadence and as long as they had each other.

* * *

**_A/N: Sooooo.....what did you think? I just have to tell you guys that I started writing Ashleigh's wedding last night and it is SOOOOOOO cute :0) I can't wait to share it with you! I think it starts in like Chapter 93 so you don't have too long to wait. But I've probably said too much already....I'll be quiet now....hehe. Hope you liked the two chapters today!_**


	91. Home

HOME

Three days later Casey was transferred out of the intensive care unit and put into a regular room in the hospital. She was still very weak and needed help getting around. Cappie had tried that morning to go into work. He thought it would help take everything off of his mind but in actuality it made him think of things even more. So he finished up some last minute reports and headed off to the hospital. He walked into Casey's room to see her sitting up in a recliner next to the bed.

"Hey you," he said walking over and sitting on the edge of the bed.

Casey looked up as her husband walked into the room. He was still in his work clothes: a pair of black dress pants and a light blue button down shirt. His hair was a little messier than usual but she loved the way he looked in his work clothes. Cappie knew this too as she was pretty much all over him every time he came home from work.

"Cap what are you doing here?" Casey asked. "You were supposed to work today."

"I know," Cappie replied. "But I just couldn't concentrate. How are you doing?"

"Pretty good. I was able to eat almost all of my lunch which the nurses were happy about."

"I see they got you up to the chair," said Cappie.

"Yeah, it feels so good to sit up," Casey replied. "They want me back into bed soon though because I guess I'm getting another unit of blood."

"Another one?" asked Cappie. "I thought they said yesterday was going to be your last one."

"I thought so too," Casey replied. "But they still aren't completely satisfied with my blood levels I guess."

"I suppose I can't complain as long as you're getting better."

"How's Cadence?" Casey asked.

"She's having a blast at your parent's house," Cappie replied. "I think they spoil her even more than we do which I didn't think was possible."

"Yeah, well, she's an amazing little girl," Casey replied. "We're so lucky to have her."

Cappie just smiled as he took Casey's hand into his.

"How are you doing in here?" Cappie asked as he used his other hand and pointed to Casey's heart.

"Still a little broken," Casey replied with a sigh. "Dr. Snyder came in earlier today and we had a long talk. She helped me realize that even if we had caught the ectopic pregnancy earlier there still was no way to save the baby. It was like the pregnancy was doomed before it even started."

"Hey, don't say that," said Cappie squeezing her hand. "You and I are meant to have more children. This is just a bump in the road along the way."

"Well you can jump on the bandwagon with Dr. Snyder then," said Casey rolling her eyes.

"What is that supposed to mean?" Cappie asked.

"When she was talking to me earlier today she was talking about how she would be happy to prescribe some fertility drugs for us if we are having trouble getting pregnant again," said Casey. "It's like everyone is all for the two of us just jumping right back into bed and having another child just like nothing happened."

"That's not true," said Cappie. "Yes, I want to have more children but I understand you've been through a lot and I'm not going to push you into anything."

"What if I decide I just can't handle being pregnant again?" Casey asked. "What if I don't want any more children?"

Cappie paused.

"This is not a decision you need to be making right now," he said. "I know if you just give it some time your mind will change."

"And what if it doesn't?" Casey asked. "What if months or years from now I still feel the same way? Are you going to leave me?"

"No, no," said Cappie quickly. "I'm never going to leave you Case. You've already given me a beautiful baby girl. If that's all we decide on having then it's something I'm going to live with."

"Don't give me that bull Cappie," snapped Casey. "You're just telling me what you think I want to hear. I know you want more kids more than anything. And I'm scared to death thinking there's a possibility I may never be able to give that to you."

Casey began to break down. Cappie got off of the bed and put his arms around Casey.

"Can we please put the discussion on having more kids on hold?" he asked as he rubbed her back up and down. "I really just want to focus on you right now. Having you healthy is the most important thing on my list. We can deal with everything else later OK?"

Casey backed away with tears still streaming down her face.

"I just feel like I'm letting you down," she said with a solemn expression.

"You're not….OK?" said Cappie. "I love you no matter what happens. You are my everything Casey and I don't think you realize that I almost lost you. You almost died. Please just focus on you right now. There is no need for you to get worked up. It's not good for you."

Casey leaned forward and nestled her head into Cappie's chest.

"I love you too," she whispered as she worked on calming herself down.

A few minutes later she was able to stop crying and backed away from Cappie.

"Wanna go for a little walk?" Cappie asked.

"I don't know if I can," Casey replied. "My legs have no strength in them."

"How are they going to get stronger if you don't use them?" Cappie asked.

"True," Casey replied pushing her bedside table out of the way.

"Plus you have me here," said Cappie smiling at her. "I'm sure I can catch you if you fall."

"Always my hero," said Casey smiling back at him.

Cappie stood beside her and helped her into standing.

"Are you feeling OK?" he asked before they started walking.

"Just a little dizzy," Casey replied. "But it's getting better the more I stand."

After a couple of deep breaths Casey grabbed Cappie's arm and began taking a few steps.

"You're doing great honey," said Cappie as he snaked his arm around her waist for some extra support.

Casey made it to the door of her room with Cappie's help.

"I think I should turn around now," she said. "I don't want to try and do too much."

"OK," said Cappie as he helped her turn around and get her back over towards the bed.

Just as she neared the bed one of Casey's legs gave out on her and she began to fall. But Cappie would never let that happen. He scooped her up with both of his arms and put her into the bed.

"Sorry about that," said Casey as she covered herself with some blankets. "I guess I must have thought I could do more than my body wanted to do."

"It's OK," said Cappie sitting on the bed next to her. "I'm always going to be here for you. And I'm proud of you for what you did. It's a lot considering everything you've been through."

"Oh I see you've gotten back into bed," said a nurse as she walked into the room carrying a pint of blood.

"Yeah, my husband helped me back in," Casey replied smiling at Cappie.

"I'm just here to hook up your blood transfusion," said the nurse.

"Hopefully my last one," said Casey. "But I won't get my hopes up considering I said the same line when I was getting the one yesterday."

"You just never know," said the nurse as she began setting things up.

"I think I'm going to get going sweetheart," said Cappie standing up. "I'll be back later this evening."

"OK," said Casey giving him a soft kiss on the lips. "I love you."

"Love you too," said Cappie as he walked out of the room.

* * *

Four days later Casey was cleared to come home from the hospital. She was able to walk around short distances by herself to the bathroom and back but still pretty weak. Cappie made sure everything was set up for her when she got home. He even fixed her a bed on the couch in the living room because he figured stairs would be too hard for her at this point.

After Casey was settled in on the couch Cappie left to go and pick Cadence up from the Cartwrights. Cadence ran right up to her mom as soon as she got in the door.

"Ma-ma! Ma-ma!" she exclaimed.

"Hi sweetheart," said Casey as Cadence climbed up on the couch next to her.

"Ball!" said Cadence as she reached her hands towards the coffee table.

Casey took the ball off of the coffee table and set it in Cadence's lap.

"She's really starting to learn her words," said Cappie coming over and taking a seat next to them on the couch.

"Yeah, pretty soon she'll be talking in complete sentences," said Casey with a small laugh.

"That will be so cool," said Cappie. "Then I can actually have a conversation with her."

Cadence took the ball into her hands and reached it towards Casey.

"Ma-ma sick," she said as she sadly looked at Casey.

"Is your ball going to make mommy feel better?" Casey asked taking the ball from Cadence.

Cadence smiled up at Casey.

"She's certainly very thoughtful," said Cappie picking Cadence up and putting her in his lap.

"She must get that from me," said Casey jokingly.

Cappie just rolled his eyes as he stood up with Cadence.

"It's time for bed young lady," he said. "Give mommy a goodnight kiss."

Cappie leaned Cadence down towards Casey and she gave Casey a nice wet kiss on the cheek.

"We really need to work on her kissing abilities," Casey joked as she wiped off her cheek.

"Hey the worse of a kisser she is the less boys will be after her," said Cappie. "I'm happy with where we are at."

Casey just smiled as Cappie took Cadence upstairs. He came back down about a half an hour later, now in a pair of shorts and t-shirt.

"Did she fall right asleep?" Casey asked.

"She was a little fussy tonight," Cappie replied grabbing a bottle of water from the refrigerator. "But I think it's just because your parents kept her up a little later than we usually do."

Cappie sat on the couch next to Casey and she snuggled in next to him.

"Are you going to sleep down here with me?" she asked.

"I wasn't planning on it," he replied. "But I certainly will if you want me to. I'll just have to set up the baby monitor down here."

Casey just turned to look at Cappie and smiled.

"You are such an amazing father," she said to him.

"Well it's easy with an awesome baby like Cadence," he replied.

"She really is incredible," said Casey with a sigh. "I still get butterflies in my stomach every time I hear her call me ma-ma."

"Me too, well, when she called me da-da," Cappie replied correcting himself.

"I can't wait until she tells me she loves me for the first time," said Casey, still looking directly into Cappie's eyes. "That will be so sweet."

"Sure will," Cappie replied.

"These are all moments I'm going to miss if we don't have any more children," said Casey solemnly.

"Hey, I thought we weren't going to talk about that for a while," said Cappie giving her a disapproving look.

"But this is something good," said Casey as her eyes lit up a little. "Being around Cadence makes me realize that I do want more children deep down. It's just the fear that I have that I'm going to have to get over."

"And I really think it will come with time sweetheart," said Cappie pulling her close to him so she rested against his chest.

"I hope so Cap," said Casey. "Because I really do want to have more children with you. We make such cute babies."

"Yeah, we sure do," said Cappie as a smile grew over his face.

Cappie squeezed Casey a little tighter as he felt her grow more and more limp against his chest. She had fallen asleep quickly. She was probably worn out with the extra walking and the trip home from the hospital for the day. Cappie ran his hand through her soft hair and down the side of her cheek. He couldn't help but continue smiling at Casey's comment. Her admitting to him that she really did feel she wanted more children was a huge step. He knew that one day they would have another child. It would all just depend on when Casey felt strong enough both physically and emotionally to do so.

* * *

**_A/N: So I finished writing the couple of chapters for Ash and Beave's wedding last night :0) They are so cute! I'm sure you guys won't be disappointed. The next chapter starts the festivities with Ash's bachelorette party._**

**_Hope you guys liked the convos between Casey and Cappie in this chapter. I think it's really important for Casey to feel strong enough and get past what happened before the two of them consider having children again. As always, reviews welcome :0)_**


	92. Lay Me Down

LAY ME DOWN

The next two months flew by quickly. It took Casey about a month to fully recover from her surgery and get her strength back. Cappie stayed home from work for a while so he could take care of Cadence which helped out a lot with Casey's recovery. Casey even joined the local gym recently so she could use some of the machines and weights to really get her strength back. Things have been completely back to normal for about three weeks now. Cappie has been going into work regularly while Casey stays home and takes care of Cadence.

Casey couldn't be more excited her best friend's wedding was coming up in just a week. She and Ashleigh have really put a lot of time and effort into planning and making sure everything was going to be perfect.

Tonight is Ashleigh's bachelorette party. They had planned for a limo to pick up everyone and then take them to Ashleigh's favorite sushi place for dinner. Then it was going to be a night on the town visiting several bars and dance clubs. Casey was very excited for the party. She really hasn't been able to get out much with all of her friends since Cadence was born so she was going to use this time wisely.

Cadence was taking her afternoon nap and Casey was finishing folding some laundry when Cappie came home.

"Anyone home?" he asked jokingly as he came in the door.

"Hey honey," called Casey from the laundry room. "You're home early."

"It was a slow day at work," Cappie replied setting his things down on the kitchen counter. "How are things around here?"

"They're good," Casey replied walking into the kitchen. "Cadence is still napping and I was just about to get ready for Ashleigh's party tonight."

"Are you sure you're up to it?" Cappie asked with concern.

Casey glared at him. She appreciated the fact that Cappie has been super protective of her since everything happened but it really was starting to get on her nerves.

"I'll be fine," she said rolling her eyes.

"So what are you guys going to be doing again?" Cappie asked ignoring Casey's frustrated comment.

"We are going to dinner and then to a few dance clubs downtown. The limo is supposed to be here at five-thirty to pick me up."

Cappie looked at his watch.

"Mmmmm, it's only three-thirty right now," he said putting his hands on Casey's waist. "How about I help you get undressed for your shower?"

Casey smiled as Cappie's sexy eyes looked down at her with need. The truth was that the two of them have not had sex since Casey was in the hospital. Cappie didn't force the issue at first because of everything Casey had been through. But he had become much more interested in making love to her over the past week. His wife was beautiful, there was no doubt about that. He just wanted to get the chance to show her how much he loves her by making love.

"Maybe you should just join me in the shower?" said Casey in her sexiest tone of voice.

"You certainly don't have to ask me twice," said a somewhat surprised Cappie as he leaned down and kissed her. He wasn't quite expecting that answer for her.

Slowly the two of them made their way to the master bathroom upstairs. Once inside Cappie lifted Casey up to sit on the counter so her face we directly even with his. He could feel himself getting hotter by the second. She began to unbutton his shirt as he took hers off and threw it onto the floor. Cappie backed away briefly and observed the sexy black lacy bra Casey had on.

"I like that bra," he whispered leaning close to her. "Too bad it's not going to stay on you much longer."

"Is that so?" Casey giggled as Cappie unhooked her bra and threw it onto the ground also.

Casey finished taking off Cappie's shirt and stood up off the counter. Cappie immediately pulled her against him and began kissing her again. Casey reached her hands up and began running them wildly through his long hair as the two kissed passionately.

"I want you so bad Case," moaned Cappie as he unbuttoned her jeans and slid them down her legs.

Casey stepped out of her jeans as she played with the buckle on Cappie's belt.

"Why don't you start the water so it's nice and hot for when we're ready to get in," whispered Casey as she finally got Cappie's belt undone.

"My pleasure," said Cappie kissing her several times before he backed away and went to go and turn on the shower.

Casey watched him, feeling as turned on as he was. But then she made the mistake of glancing in the mirror. Immediately her eyes were drawn to the large scar across her abdomen and thoughts of everything she went through and losing the baby came flooding back to her.

Cappie hadn't noticed the change in Casey's expression as he made his way back over towards her.

"The water should be just the right temperature for when we're ready," he said as he leaned in and began softly kissing her neck and collarbone.

Casey tried everything she could to push the thoughts she was having out of her head. Her heart began to race as she thought about the pain she was in right before going to the hospital. And then she thought about the loss of the baby and nervousness set in with the possibility of becoming pregnant again. She attempted to concentrate on just Cappie and their need for each other, regardless of how she felt. She reached his head back up towards her and leaned in to kiss him. Cappie began running his hands all over Casey's body. But it was when his hands grazed over her scar that sent Casey over the edge. She couldn't pretend anymore.

"Cap," she said pushing him away. "I can't."

"Wait, what?" Cappie asked with a dumbfounded look on his face.

"I, I thought I was ready," Casey stuttered as she reached for her clothes. "But I'm, I'm not."

"Whoa, hold up," said Cappie grabbing her arm and turning her so she looked him right in the eyes. "Everything was going perfect. What happened?"

"I looked in the mirror," Casey said sadly. "I saw the scar and everything changed. I guess I'm not ready for this yet."

"Come on Case," said Cappie trying his hardest to not be angry. "It's been two months. I thought that would be plenty of time."

"I know, I thought so too," said Casey as she put her bra back on.

"Wait," said Cappie pulling her as close to him as he could. "I need you Casey. I want to feel that connection with you again. I want to make love to you, show you how much I love you. This has nothing to do with you getting pregnant. This has everything to do with the two of us reconnecting again. Hell, I'll even wear a condom if it'll make you feel better."

Casey just stared up into Cappie's eyes. She could see he was hurt and she really did feel bad. But at the same time she was hurt too. She was just not ready for this yet and he needed to respect that.

"Sorry Cap," she said backing away. "I wish things were different. I just can't do this right now."

With that Casey walked out of the bathroom leaving Cappie standing there in shock. A few moments later she heard him get into the shower. She looked at the clock and saw it was nearing four-thirty. She needed to get showered and ready for Ashleigh's party tonight, so she took her shower in the guest bathroom. After taking a long and warm shower to calm herself down she headed into their bedroom, almost dreading running into her husband. But he wasn't there. She glanced at Cadence's room and noticed the door was now open. Cappie must have gotten her up and went downstairs.

Casey put on a pair of dark blue skinny jeans and a hot pink halter top to wear out for the night. She decided to wear her hair straight as she didn't have time to curl it. She slipped on matching hot pink stiletto heels and looked at herself in the mirror. She smiled at how hot she looked. It was like the clothes covered all of the wounds and scars she had, literally and figuratively.

Casey made her way downstairs to wait for the limo to pick her up. She found Cappie sitting at the kitchen table with Cadence in her highchair eating dinner.

"You look nice," he said coldly.

"Thanks," Casey replied, unsure of how to take Cappie's comment.

The two of them sat in awkward silence as they watching Cadence eat her dinner. Casey wanted to say something and she knew she probably should say something but her mind was at a loss for words.

"Do you know when you'll be home?" Cappie asked breaking the silence.

"We have the limo booked until two," Casey replied. "So it'll drop me off sometime before then."

"That helps," said Cappie rolling his eyes.

"Well it really just depends on how the night goes," said Casey raising her voice. "After what just happened I'm not sure if I'm even going to be able to have a good time."

"Please do have a good time. At least one of us will be," said Cappie bitterly.

"You have no right to make me feel like this," Casey yelled.

"Just drop it Case. We are not going to argue in front of Cadence about this," Cappie replied.

Casey grunted as she grabbed her purse and walked to the front door to look out for the limo. A few minutes later the limo pulled up outside the house.

"I'm leaving now," she called out to Cappie. "Call me if you need anything."

"Bye," was all Casey heard Cappie say as she shut the door and headed towards the stretch Lincoln Navigator limo she had booked for all the girls to ride in for the night.

"Casey!" exclaimed Rebecca as she swung open the door to let Casey in.

"Hey Bex!" said Casey.

"I haven't seen you since everything happened," said Rebecca giving her a hug. "I'm so sorry."

"Can we not talk about that tonight Bex?" asked Casey as pulled away from Rebecca and got into the limo. "I just want to forget about everything right now."

"Casey!" yelled several of her other sorority sisters as she climbed inside the limo.

Casey went around and hugged Betsy, Laura, Jordan and Beth before taking her seat.

"Off to get the woman of the evening!" shouted Laura as the limo pulled off.

"Here Case," said Betsy handing her a shot glass filled with some sort of liquor. "Let's get rowdy tonight!"

"Here's to great sisters, great friends and a night we'll never forget!" shouted Casey as she took the shot.

It burned going down but it quickly made Casey relax a little bit.

"How about another one Besty?" Casey asked handing her the shot glass back.

"Case, we haven't even picked up Ashleigh yet," Rebecca leaned over and whispered to her.

"Bex, there is no time like the present to get the party started," said Casey as she took the refilled shot glass back from Besty. "Bottoms up!"

Rebecca just glared at Casey. This was not like her to down shots so quickly. Casey is usually the type of person who nurses a lemon drop for about an hour at a time unless she wants to get drunk, then it's a couple of lemon drops an hour. There was something definitely wrong with her and it was quite apparent that whatever it was, she was trying to drown it with alcohol. She could already tell this night was going to get a lot crazier than any of them had planned.

* * *

**_A/N: Glad everyone is excited to read about Ash and Beaver's wedding. Hope you liked the start of Ash's bachelorette party with this chapter. It will be continued tomorrow.....sorry to leave you with a little cliffhanger. What do you think is going to happen???_**


	93. Carry You There

CARRY YOU THERE

The limo picked Ashleigh up and the girls headed to the sushi restaurant for dinner. Casey had a total of three shots on the way to pick up Ashleigh and was feeling pretty good by the time they got to the sushi restaurant.

"You know, who ever came up with the idea of eating raw fish anyway?" Casey asked as the food was served. "It sounds so yucky but it's really soooo yummy."

"Case, are you feeling alright?" Ashleigh asked.

"Of course!" exclaimed Casey. "It's your bachelorette party and we. are here. to have. a good. time."

Ashleigh shot a confused look at Rebecca. She knew once Casey started enunciating her words, drunkness was beginning to come over her.

"What's going on with her?" Ashleigh whispered to Rebecca.

"Something," Rebecca replied. "I'm just not sure what."

"Hey now, no whispering," said Casey noticing her two best friends having a conversation without her. "This night is just for my bestest friend in the whole wide world Ashleigh. I love you Ashleigh."

"Aw, I love you too Case," said Ashleigh awkwardly giving Casey a hug.

The girls finished dinner and made their way to Ontourage Night Club. The club was bare at first because it was early in the night. But by eleven the girls were on the dance floor having a great time. Ashleigh proudly wore her bachelorette shash and crown Casey had gotten her.

"You just order whatever drinks you want Ash," said Casey. "Everything is on me and the girls."

"Thanks Case," Ashleigh replied.

A couple minutes later a waitress made her way over to their VIP area with a tray full of shots.

"Shots for everyone!" Casey yelled as she passed the shot glasses around. "I would like to make a toast to Ashleigh. She is a great friend and I know we all couldn't be happier for her. You finally found a great guy Ash. We love you and we love Evan, no wait, Beaver," Casey giggled at her mistake. "And we wish you nothing but the best. To Ashleigh!"

All the girls clanked their shot glasses together and downed the shot. Then Casey pulled Ashleigh out onto the dance floor and began dancing with several guys around them.

"Watch out boys," teased Casey. "After next week she's off-limits."

"And she's completely off-limits," said Ashleigh grabbing Casey and glaring at one of the guys who was eyeing Casey while she was dancing.

"Loosen up Ash, we're just here to have some fun," said Casey as she went back to dancing.

The girls continued dancing for the next hour. By this time Casey was completely inebriated. She had a couple more rounds of shots with girls plus a few lemon drops over the course of the night. For once she was feeling good and having a good time.

They decided it was time to leave Club Entourage and go to a different one.

"No wait! I love this song!" yelled Casey. "We can't go until it's over!"

All the girls eyed Casey on the dance floor in her own little world.

"Come on Casey, we want to get out of here," whined Laura. "It's time to check out another club."

Casey just kept dancing like she hadn't heard her friends.

"Ash why don't you and the girls head off to the next club?" said Rebecca. "I'll bring Casey over once she's done dancing."

"Are you sure?" Ashleigh asked.

"Yes, now go bride-to-be," replied Rebecca as she pushed Ashleigh towards the door.

"We'll be at Club 720!" Beth yelled to Rebecca so she knew where they were going.

Casey took one last shot after the song was over and began stumbling her way towards the door.

"Let's go Bex!" she yelled. "Off to another club! Wooooo!"

"Case, are you sure you're OK?" Rebecca asked. "I've never seen you drink this much."

"I'm fine Bex," said Casey just as she stumbled on a crack on the sidewalk.

Rebecca reached over to prevent Casey from falling. Then she realized she was practically holding Casey up while they made their way to Club 720.

"Casey, you have to help me out here," said Rebecca. "I can't carry you there."

"Bex I don't feel so good," Casey whispered.

"Oh god," said Rebecca as she shut her eyes the minute she saw Casey start to gag.

Casey vomited a couple of times on the sidewalk but kept walking like it didn't faze her.

"Hey, at least the fish is still raw!" laughed Casey as she continued hanging onto Rebecca as they walked towards the club.

Rebecca was trying her best to keep Casey upright but Casey was growing heavier by the second. The only thing she could do was drag her over to one of the buildings along the sidewalk and sit her down. Casey bent her knees up and leaned her back against the side of the building.

"Hey, we're not walking anymore," said Casey after sitting there for a minute, her drunken state causing a major delay in her mind processing.

"No shit Sherlock Holmes," Rebecca replied standing in front of Casey.

"Bex, why are you so mean to me?" Casey asked in a sad, but child-like voice. "I never did anything to you. You make me feel saaaaad."

"Casey, you are ruining Ashleigh's party!" exclaimed Rebecca. "This night is supposed to be about her but instead the two of us are busy trying to make sure you don't get yourself into trouble because you're so drunk!"

"I. am. not. drunk," said Casey slowly as she tried to stand up but failed miserably and fell back down to the ground.

"You can't even stand up!" scolded Rebecca. "Casey, you're a mess. What in the hell is going on?"

"I don't want to talk about it," said Casey as she buried her head in her arms.

"Well that's not a good enough answer for me," said Rebecca sitting next to her. "Talk to me Case. I won't judge you. I promise."

Casey looked up at Rebecca, tears now streaming down her face.

"My marriage is falling apart and it's all my fault," said Casey as she buried her head back into her arms.

Rebecca sat there in shock. She had no idea Cappie and Casey were having problems.

"I can't even have sex with my own husband because of this stupid ectopic pregnancy that happened to me," Casey said muffled by her head still in her arms.

Rebecca put her arm around Casey and began rubbing her back.

"Casey, Cappie loves you. You love Cappie. I don't understand where all this is are coming from," said Rebecca.

Casey lifted her head up and looked at Rebecca.

"Bex, am I ever going to get over this?" Casey began to sob. "Am I—"

Casey couldn't even finish her sentence. She began sobbing uncontrollably into Rebecca's shoulder. There was no doubt Casey did feel like crying, but not as much as she was. The alcohol made her a hundred times more emotional and that is where the sobbing came into play. Rebecca comforted her for a few minutes before she realized Casey was in no condition to continue the night. She caught site of the limo up the street a little bit.

"Come on Case, I think it's time for you to go home," said Rebecca.

Casey didn't even have the energy left in her to argue with Rebecca. She allowed Rebecca to help her stand up and leaned on her as they walked to the limo. Rebecca helped her in and went up to the driver.

"Can you take her home and come back here to wait for the rest of us?" she asked. "She's had a rough night."

"Sure thing miss," the limo driver replied as he started the car.

Rebecca peeked back in the limo to say goodbye to Casey but she was already lying on the seat passed out. Rebecca decided to just leave her alone for the time being. She watched the limo drive off and pulled out her cell phone.

"Hey Cap, it's Rebecca," she said.

"What's up Rebecca?" Cappie asked.

"Can you keep a lookout for the limo driver?" Rebecca replied. "He's bringing Casey home and she's probably going to need your help getting inside."

"What the hell happened?" Cappie asked.

"Casey drank waaayy too much," Rebecca replied. "And she thinks your marriage is falling apart."

"What? That's crazy," Cappie replied.

"Well, certainly not to her Cap," Rebecca replied.

"I'll take care of things. Thanks Rebecca," said Cappie with a sigh.

"You're welcome. I'll see you at the wedding next week."

"Bye."

Around twenty minutes after Cappie hung up with Rebecca he saw the limo pull up outside of the house. He slipped on his shoes and met the limo driver outside as he got out of the front seat.

"I got her," said Cappie as he opened the door to find his wife a mess in the backseat.

Cappie picked Casey up in his arms and carried her into the house. He set her down on the couch and went into the kitchen to get her a glass of water. Her eyes were beginning to open as he walked back over to the couch.

"Here, drink this," he said handing her the glass of water.

Cappie sighed as he sat down next to Casey. He looked at her as she took a sip of the water he had given her. She had streaks of mascara running down her cheeks, obviously from crying, and her hair was all over the place. She truly looked like she had an emotional night. Casey finally turned her head and looked into Cappie's eyes. He could see the tears she still had in her eyes. Her expression was full of pain. Suddenly Casey dove towards him and began kissing his passionately. At first he put his arms around her and held her tight as he kissed her. But Casey started taking things to the next level as she ran her hands underneath his shirt.

"Stop," said Cappie pushing her away. "This isn't the way to do this."

"But this is what you want," pleaded Casey. "Let's go upstairs and have sex all night long."

Casey leaned back in towards Cappie for a kiss but he pushed her away again.

"Case, I'm serious," he said. "This is not going to change anything."

"Sure it will," said Casey. "Right now my mind is a little clouded with alcohol so it will hopefully help me relax while we do this. Come on Cap, I want you."

"God, listen to yourself Casey!" yelled Cappie as he stood up from the couch. "You're practically throwing yourself at me like some cheap whore. That is not my wife. That is not the woman I love."

"I'm only doing what you want Cappie. All I want to do is make you happy," said Casey sadly.

"That's exactly the problem," said Cappie as he began to pace. "I'm not going to be completely satisfied until I know it's what you want too Casey. This afternoon I finally felt the connection with you we've been missing. You wanted it as much as I did. I know you did Case. But you got scared. And I respect that."

"You sure didn't act like you respected it at the time," said Casey gazing down at the floor.

"Well how was I supposed to react?" Cappie asked. "You had me so turned on and then just stopped everything cold turkey. Any guy would be frustrated in that situation. What I'm confused about is exactly what happened? You were all for everything at first. It was just like old times."

There was a silence between the two of them after Cappie asked the question.

"I just can't lose another baby Cap. I just can't," Casey began to cry.

Cappie stopped pacing and looked at his wife sobbing on the couch. The site almost caused tears to form in his eyes also. How on earth did the two of them get to this point?

"Come on, we've said enough tonight," said Cappie as he went over and picked Casey back up into his arms.

Casey snuggled into the nook of his arm as he took her upstairs. She lifted her head up and looked at him once they entered the bedroom.

"Cap," she said in an almost child-like voice due to being so drunk. "Do you still love me?"

Cappie looked at her and was about to scold her for asking such a dumb question. But knowing her current state of mind, he knew she just needed to be reassured.

"Of course I do honey," he replied as he set her down onto the bed. "Nothing is ever going to change that. This is just a bump on the road to our journey in life together. We'll get through it. I promise."

"I love you Cappie," said Casey softly as she snuggled up to her pillow and began to fall asleep.

"I'll always love you Casey," Cappie whispered stroking the hair out of her face and kissing her on the cheek.

* * *

**_A/N: So I hope everyone liked how this ended. Rebecca and Ashleigh are too good of friends I think to let anything bad happen to Casey. I really liked how Rebecca was her protector from things in this chapter.....really showed how good their friendship really is. I know some of you were upset with Cappie in the last chapter so I hope he at least redeemed himself a little bit in this chapter._**

**_Next chapter is the bachelor party and I have to let you guys in on a little secret.....I originally just wrote Ashleigh's party. But since a lot of you mentioned Beaver's party in your reviews I decided to add it and wrote it just a couple of days ago :0) I think it's a pretty funny chapter and I hope you guys like it. _**

**_Also, NuitAngel....huge props to you for picking up on the 3:45 thing! I wasn't sure if anyone picked up on that or not. Your comment made me laugh and I did originally consider a 3:45 hook-up at the end of this chapter but with Casey being so drunk I just didn't think it was appropriate for their first time after everything that happened._**

**_OK, I'll shut up now.....LoL! Keep the reviews coming and let me know what you think :0)_**


	94. Magic Carpet Ride

MAGIC CARPET RIDE

Cappie was in his car and on his way to Beaver's the next day. It was time for his bachelor party. Cappie had considered taking all the boys to Vegas for Beaver's party but with so many brothers and different schedules he just couldn't make it work. So he was determined to bring Vegas to Chicago and still plan a great time for his best friend Beaver.

Cappie was excited for the party but he was still worried about Casey. Things were slightly awkward between the two of them when they woke up this morning. It's not like they were fighting or anything. It was that they didn't know what to say to each other more or less. Casey apologized and gave him the green light to get wasted and call her drunk to pick him up tonight to make up for it. But the realization was that it didn't make up for last night. He almost felt guilty for everything that had happened and causing Casey to get so drunk like that. He kept telling himself it wasn't his fault though because he was only following her leads. She's the one who invited him to take a shower with her. She was taking off his clothes just as much as he was taking off hers. Just thinking about everything got him frustrated and he pounded his hand on the steering wheel. After the stinging pain wore off he calmed down a bit. Tonight was a new night. Tonight was his best friend's bachelor party and he needed to be fun-loving, crazy Cappie tonight. It's what everyone would expect him to be and he couldn't let them down now.

Cappie parked the Jeep in front of Beaver's building and went up to the door and knocked.

"Hey Cap," said Ashleigh as she answered the door.

Cappie looked at Ashleigh and couldn't help but laugh a little on the inside. She was in sweats with her hair tied up on the top of her head. She had no make-up on and big, dark circles around her eyes.

"Hey Ash," said Cappie as he walked in. "You sure look like you had a crazy time last night."

"Tell me about it," said Ashleigh as she sat on the couch. "I don't think I've ever been more hung over in my entire life than what I am right now."

"Just drink lots of water and you'll get through it," said Cappie. "I should know, I'm the master of hangovers."

Ashleigh just laughed as she picked up a throw pillow and hugged it in her lap.

"Where's Beaver?" Cappie asked looking around as he sat in the recliner chair across from Ashleigh.

"He just got out of the shower," Ashleigh replied. "He should be ready soon."

"Oh, OK," Cappie replied.

The two of them sat in silence for a bit. They each knew they wanted to talk about Casey and the party last night but both were afraid to bring up the subject. Finally, Ashleigh couldn't take it anymore.

"So how is Casey this morning?" she asked.

"Not quite as hung over as you," Cappie replied. "But she certainly felt it last night."

"I can't believe everything that happened," said Ashleigh. "Casey was the last person I would expect to leave the party early."

"Yeah, well, her and I had a little incident before she left for your party," said Cappie. "And I think she was just trying to hide her pain with the alcohol."

"What kind of incident?" Ashleigh asked as she hugged the pillow a little more.

Cappie hesitated briefly before telling Ashleigh the truth. But he realized Casey would tell her eventually and he really wanted to get her thoughts on the situation so he went ahead and told her what happened.

"We almost had sex," said Cappie. "But she ended up getting scared and stopping and it really shook her up. She's blaming herself for it and feels like she's disappointing me because we haven't had sex since everything happened."

"Are you disappointed?" Ashleigh asked looking straight at Cappie.

"Who wouldn't be deep down?" Cappie sighed. "Making love to Casey is amazing and I really miss that part of our relationship. But I can't be mad that she's still scared. It's completely understandable."

"So what are you two going to do now?" Ashleigh asked.

"I don't know. I guess just continue to talk things out and keep taking it one day at a time."

"I guess that's all you can do," Ashleigh sighed.

"Hey Cap!" said Beaver as he entered the living room.

"Hey bro," said Cappie standing and giving him a hug. "Are you ready for a wild and crazy night?"

"Shhhhh," said Beaver playfully as he brought his finger to his lips. "I told her we were just enjoying a nice night at the ballet."

"Just don't get too crazy at that ballet," joked Ashleigh as she stood up and wrapped her arms around Beaver's neck.

She leaned in and gave him a soft kiss on the lips.

"Just remember," she added as she slowly backed away. "I'll be waiting for you when you get home."

Beaver looked at her with intensely sexy eyes as Ashleigh giggled and made her way back to the bedroom.

"Don't let her fool you Beave," said Cappie putting his arm around him. "She'll be asleep before nine."

Both boys laughed as they headed outside to Cappie's car.

"We're meeting everyone at the Trump International downtown," said Cappie as he got into the driver's seat. "Then the limo will pick us up so we can start our evening of fun."

"Let's do it," Beaver replied as Cappie made his way to the hotel.

Once at the hotel the boys made their way up to the royal suite where all of the bachelor party guests were staying for the night. Gonzo, Rusty, Wade, Heath, Ben Bennett, Pickle, Jeremy and Ferret were all lounging around in the living area when Cappie and Beaver entered the room.

"The man of the evening has arrived!" shouted Cappie as they walked in.

All the boys stood and greeted Cappie and Beaver. Soon beers were pulled from the fridge and everyone was lounging around drinking and catching up with each other.

"Alright guys," said Cappie as he gulped the last of the beer he had. "It's seven, the limo should be here to take us to our first stop of the evening."

All the boys cheered as they made their way downstairs and got into the limo.

"Cap, where exactly are we going?" Beaver asked.

"You just worry your pretty little ass about having the time of your life," Cappie replied. "I've got this all taken care of."

About twenty minutes later the limo stopped in front of the Hard Rock restaurant. All the boys were escorted upstairs to the VIP room for dinner. Once everyone had their drinks Cappie stood up for a toast.

"I just want to say thank you to everyone for coming here and celebrating Beaver's last hurrah of bachelor life. I don't think we have ever done something like this but I know us Kappa Taus are going to do it best. We've got a great night planned for you Beave. We wish you all the luck in marriage but tonight is not the night to be thinking about that. Tonight is going to be a night you'll never remember!"

"Uh, don't you mean never forget?" Rusty piped in.

"No, Russ, never remember," Cappie eyed him with a small smile. "To Beaver everyone!"

All the boys raised their glasses in the air to toast Beaver as their food arrived. After eating, Cappie grabbed a bag that he had hiding under the table and handed it to Beaver.

"This, my friend, is your costume for the night," Cappie gave him an evil smile.

The next thing Beaver knew the boys pushed him into a nearby bathroom and told him to get dressed. Several minutes later Beaver busted out of the bathroom in a full spandex Superman costume, a top hat that said 'Groom to be' and a ball and chain locked around his right foot. All the boys roared laughing as soon as they saw him.

"You're lucky you had a quick wedding bro," Beaver glared at Cappie playfully. "I would have gotten you so bad."

"Well that doesn't matter now because it's time for us to have a wonderful night, mostly laughing at your expense," said Cappie as he put his arm around Beaver and led him back over to the table.

There were two rounds of shots on the table.

"Let's get this started boys!" yelled Wade as everyone picked up the first shot and took it.

"And one for good luck," said Heath as they all picked up the second shot and downed it.

"Our next spot awaits," said Cappie as all the brothers followed him downstairs and into the limo.

They continued to take more shots and drink some beer in the limo while they were on their way to the club. Once they got to the front of the club Cappie pulled a ton of Mardi Gras beads out and handed them to all the guys.

"Gentleman, it is our mission tonight to show Beaver all the boobies we can get because let's face it, after next week he's going to be staring at the same boobies for the rest of his life," said Cappie with a laugh.

All the boys put the beads around their neck and headed into the club. They were escorted up to a VIP room and waitresses began immediately bringing them drinks. It didn't take very long for the VIP area to be flooded with girls and believe it or not, it was Rusty who seemed to have to most luck with getting the girls to show Beaver their boobs.

"Rusty! Where have you been all our lives?" said Wade putting his arm around him. "Were you holding out on us at Kappa Tau?"

"Noooo," replied a drunk Rusty. "Maybe it's just the alcohol that helps. Hey sweetheart!" he yelled over to one of the girls. "Let's see some titties!"

Immediately the random girl lifted up her shirt to show all the boys and Rusty rewarded her with a strand of beads. Cappie couldn't help but hysterically laugh as he was sitting at the bar. He never would have picked Rusty to be the life of the party tonight. And he sure never pictured Rusty yelling the word titties. Something about it was just wrong in so many ways. Cappie looked around the room and found Beaver grinding on the dance floor in his Superman costume. It was quite possibly the funniest thing he had ever seen.

"Too bad we don't have a pledge here to carry that ball and chain around for him," said Heath coming up to Cappie interrupting his thoughts.

"Nah, Beaver's gotta manage it himself," said Cappie taking a sip of his beer. "And I think he's doing a mighty fine job."

"Boobies!" shouted a girl who came up to the two of them and flashed her boobs.

Heath promptly thanked her and gave her a strand of his beads.

"I feel out of place," said Heath sitting down next to Cappie. "Boobs just don't do it for me."

"Eh, don't worry man, seeing random boobs isn't really my thing either," Cappie stated.

Heath gave him a strange look.

"NOT that I don't enjoy breasts," Cappie said quickly. "Just none of them quite compare to my wife's."

"Hey, no talk about significant others tonight, that's one of the rules," said Heath as he took a shot off of a waitress' tray walking past them. "Drink up."

Cappie reluctantly took the shot from Heath and downed it.

"I'm a bird! I'm a plane! I'm Superman!" yelled Beaver as he stretched his arms in front of him and 'flew' over to Cappie and Heath.

"Having fun Beave?" Heath asked.

"You betcha," Beaver replied. "I hated you for this costume at first but man is it a hit with the crowd."

"I just had to make sure the bachelor got noticed," said Cappie smiling at Beaver. "But I think it's about time we all get out of here and head off to our final place before everyone gets too drunk to be able to get out of here."

Beaver nodded his head as Cappie rounded up all the boys and got into the limo. Around ten minutes later they arrived at Pink Monkey, a Gentleman's Choice-like strip club in downtown Chicago.

"No lunch buffet today gentleman," said Cappie as he stepped out of the limo. "But you are more than welcome to enjoy the fine late night buffet they have inside here."

The boys cheered as they were led inside and over to a private area. There was a large semi-circle couch that they all sat around with Beaver in the middle.

"Hello boys," said a sexy waitress dressed in a school girl uniform. "I'll be your waitress tonight. Let me know if you need anything."

"Shots, lots and lots of shots," said Wade to the waitress.

"Coming right up," she winked at him as she walked away.

"Hey look Cap, there's your naughty nurse!" yelled Rusty as he pointed to one of the strippers in a nurse's outfit.

"No naughty nurse tonight Russ," said Cappie.

"Come on Cap, lighten up a little bit," said Rusty. "There is nothing wrong with having a little bit of fun even if you're married."

Suddenly a very attractive blond came up to the group of boys.

"Which one of you is the groom?" she asked seductively.

"That would be him," said Cappie pointing to Beaver who was still in his Superman costume.

The stripper slowly made her way towards Beaver and began giving him a private lap dance. All the guys cheered him on as Beaver had a very drunk smile come over his face as the girl grinded up and down on him to the music.

"I love my life!" shouted Beaver.

Over the next two hours the boys indulged themselves in booze, babes and breasts. Even Cappie had started drinking more and was now just as drunk as the rest of them.

"You, you, you are my bestest friend," said Beaver as he put his arm around Cappie.

"No, no, no, no, no Yoooooouuuuuuu are my bestest friend," said Cappie as he also put his arm around Beaver.

"I looooove you," said Beaver as he tightened his grasp on Cappie.

"I loooooove you tooooo," Cappie replied.

"Excuse me," said Beaver letting go of Cappie as a sexy stripper walked by.

Cappie just laughed as he watched his friend go after her.

"Rusty!" yelled Cappie as he found Rusty sitting on one of the couches in the VIP area.

"Heyyy," said Rusty. "Do you know a compact finite difference method for the solution of the generalized Burgers-Malloy equation?"

"What in the hell are you talking about Rusty?" asked Cappie attempting to sit next to Rusty but got too close and sat more on top of him then he planned. "You're making my head hurt."

"Your head hurts?" asked Rusty. "I don't even know if my head is attached to my body right now."

Cappie took his hand and knocked on the side of the Rusty's head.

"Yeah dude, it's still there," he said as his eyes started to roll into the back of his head.

"Excuse me," said a bouncer coming up to the two of them. "Does this belong to your group?"

Cappie and Rusty looked up to find the bouncer holding Gonzo by his shirt in front of them.

"Yeah, that's Gonzo, wonzo, wonzo," said Rusty laughing at his rhyming of words.

"Well we just caught him urinating over by the bar," said the bouncer. "I suggest you get him out of here before we call the cops."

The bouncer threw Gonzo at the two of them as he landed across their laps.

"Dude, did you have trouble finding the bathroom?" Cappie asked him.

"I wasn't in the bathroom?" asked Gonzo who was about halfway passed out at this point.

"OK, I think it's time to round up the troops," said Cappie as he pushed Gonzo off of him and Rusty and onto the floor.

Out of all the boys Heath was probably the least drunk so he was put in charge of helping Gonzo, who could barely walk, out to the limo. Cappie was able to find Ben, Wade, Jeremy, Pickle and Ferret and direct them to the limo. He then made his way over to the bar to close their tab.

"Nine hundred dollars?" Cappie asked the bartender in shock.

"Yeah, you guys sure know how to drink," the bartender replied.

Cappie reluctantly gave her his credit card and paid the tab as he looked around the bar for Rusty and Beaver. He found them on one of the couches enjoying one last lap dance from none other than the naughty nurse. He made his way over to them.

"Come on guys," he said after she had finished. "Time for us to get out of here."

"I'm real so drunk Cap," said Beaver as he attempted to stand up.

"And I'm real so, so, so, so, so drunk," said Rusty laughing next to Beaver.

Cappie went over and helped them both up, wrapping one of his arms around each of them.

"Let's go you two," he said helping them out of the club.

The three of them joined the rest of the boys in the limo and went back to the hotel. They all stood outside while Jeremy, Ben and Pickle each had a cigarette.

"There is one last thing I think I need to do to truly be Superman," said a drunken Beaver as he made his way over towards the driveway in front of the hotel.

"Beave what are you doing?" Cappie asked.

"Superman is going to use his powers to stop a car," said Beaver as he began to walk in front of a brand new Lexus coming around the corner.

"I don't think that's such a good idea," said Rusty who was too drunk to really stop Beaver.

"Halt, I am Superman. Stop your car at once," said Beaver holding out his hand as a stop sign and stumbling on his feet to keep his balance.

The boys all cringed as the car neared Beaver hoping and praying it wouldn't hit him. But thankfully the car stopped and two beautiful girls stuck their heads out of the windows.

"What are you doing Superman?" one of the girls asked as she laughed.

"I'm a bird! I'm a plane! I'm Superman!" said Beaver once again as he jumped into the air and landed on the top of the hood of the Lexus.

"Oh my god what in the hell do you think you're doing?" yelled the driver of the car as she got out.

"I'm Superman!" yelled Beaver.

"OK Superman," said Cappie trying to sober up as best as he could to get Beaver out of there before the girls called the police. "Time to head back to Metropolis."

Cappie helped Beaver off the car and the two of them followed the rest of boys up to the hotel suite. It didn't take long for most of the brothers to pass out. Rusty on one couch, Heath on the other. Ferret, Jeremy and Wade each occupied the reclining chairs. Gonzo happily passed out on the floor. Ben Bennet and Pickle took the bedroom with two twin beds while Cappie and Beaver found the king size bed in the other bedroom the only thing left.

"We're manly enough to sleep together right?" Cappie asked looking at Beaver.

"Sure dude, as long as we stay on opposite sides of the bed," Beaver replied. "It shouldn't be a problem."

"I'm going to take a leak first," said Cappie as he went into the bathroom.

Beaver made his way over to the bed and laid down. He pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and called Ashleigh.

"Hello," she said in a soft voice.

"I'm sorry for waking you," said Beaver. "But I just wanted to call and tell you that no matter how many boobies I saw tonight, yours are still the best."

"Uh, OK," said Ashleigh with a small laugh. "How drunk are you Beave?"

"I'm gone," Beaver replied with a laugh. "And I'm Superman."

"You're Superman?"

"Yup, and I'll use my magical powers to stop cars anytime you need me to," said Beaver.

"OK honey, you're not making any sense so I'm going to let you go," said Ashleigh. "I'll see you in the morning."

"OK Ash, I love you," Beaver said with a smile.

"Love you too Superman," Ashleigh replied as she hung up the phone.

"Are you out here talking to yourself?" Cappie asked as he came out of the bathroom.

"No, just drunk dialed my bride-to-be," said Beaver on the verge of passing out. "I told her that her boobies are the bestest of any others."

"Whatever you say bro," said Cappie as he sat on the edge of the bed.

Seconds later he heard Beaver snoring next to him. It hadn't taken him long to pass out at all. Cappie laid back in the bed and thought about the night. While it was fun, there were the incidents with Gonzo peeing on the floor of the club and Beaver's attempt to be Superman that could have turned into a couple of arrests. Cappie shrugged his shoulders as he turned on his side. The most important thing was that everyone had a good time and everyone made it back safe. His mind then drifted to Casey before he fell asleep. He thought about her quite a bit while at the first bar and tried his hardest to not have it affect his mood. He hardly thought about her at all while he was at the strip club because he drowned himself in alcohol. Now he could see why she had done it. It was an easy way to forget problems in life. But at the same time it was far from the solution. Just as he was falling asleep he thought about calling her to tell her that he loved her. But he didn't want to wake her or Cadence up so he decided against the idea. He finally shook all thoughts out of his head and began to fall into a deep sleep, the sounds of Beaver's light snores playing in the background. He still wouldn't trade his life in for anything. He still had a great wife, family, brothers and friends and that was all that continued to matter.

* * *

**_A/N: So I hoped this chapter lived up to your expectations :0) I think this is now the longest chapter so far....crazy! Next chapter starts the wedding!!!!_**

**_I also just wanted to take a second to mention that I have reached the two month mark today in posting this story. Never in a million years did I expect this story to turn out like this honestly. But your constant reviews and support really keep me motivated and going. Last night I read through some of the older chapters of this story and still wonder how I come up with some of the ideas that I do....LoL. I really don't have any kind of outline written for this story. I just kind of go off the top of my head and see how it turns out. I guess I just want to thank all of you from the bottom of my heart for all the support with the story. My original plan was to stop writing once the new season starts on the 25th but now I'm not sure....I may want to keep going but maybe with less frequent updates. Always welcome to hear your thoughts on what I should do. My regular reviewers are AMAZING and I've been getting new reviewers pop up every couple of days which is always exciting so thanks for the comments. It's been a wild ride so far and I hope to continue to live up to your expectations of this story. Love you all!_**


	95. Someone

SOMEONE

"IT'S WEDDING DAY!" screamed Casey as she busted into the guest room and threw herself on top of Ashleigh.

"Excited much?" Ashleigh asked as she attempted to focus her eyes.

"How can you not be excited?" exclaimed Casey. "It's your wedding day!"

"I barely got any sleep last night," said Ashleigh with a groan. "Once I get a few cups of coffee in me I can only hope to be as excited as you."

"Coffee is already made downstairs," said Casey with a laugh. "Come on, let's go get you a cup."

Casey pulled Ashleigh out of bed and downstairs to the kitchen.

"Good morning bride-to-be," said Cappie with a smile.

"Morning," Ashleigh replied sitting next to him in one of the chairs.

"Nervous yet?" Cappie asked.

"Not really," Ashleigh replied.

"Well I'll have you know that I talked to Beave this morning and he's already a wreck," said Cappie with a laugh. "So he'll probably be nervous for the both of you."

"Aw, leave Beave alone Cap," said Casey handing Ashleigh a cup of coffee. "He's not doing anything wrong. I think it's cute he's nervous."

"Did you think it was cute when I was nervous?" Cappie asked with a grin.

"You were nervous?" Casey asked jokingly.

Cappie playfully glared at her.

"OK, yes, it was cute," Casey replied as she leaned down and gave Cappie a small kiss on the lips.

Casey turned and looked at the clock.

"Ash, we should probably get going soon. We're supposed to be at the salon in forty-five minutes," said Casey.

"OK, I'll go get ready," said Ashleigh as she took her cup of coffee and headed upstairs.

"Are you sure you're OK with taking Cadence with you?" Casey asked turning to Cappie. "Because I'm sure she'll do fine in the salon if you want to go and do some manly things with Beaver."

"We'll be fine," said Cappie standing up and walking closer to Casey. "Beaver is the one who actually asked me to bring her with us."

"And what exactly are you boys going to be doing?" Casey asked as she wrapped her arms around Cappie's neck.

"Nothing crazy," said Cappie as he put his hands on Casey's waist. "Just hanging out at Beaver's apartment. Maybe playing some cards, video games, whatever."

"Just make sure you stay PG rated in front of our daughter," said Casey softly.

"Have you ever doubted me before?" Cappie playfully asked as he leaned down and gave Casey a kiss on the lips.

"I should get upstairs and get ready too," said Casey backing away from Cappie but not staying true to her words as she kept kissing him.

"I thought you were going upstairs," said Cappie seductively.

"I was, I am," said Casey finally breaking away from him and smiling.

"Someone likes my kisses today," said Cappie smiling back at her.

"Cadence's dress is in the hallway closet. Make sure you take it with you to Beaver's. You don't have to dress her in it. I can put it on her when we get to the church," said Casey as she made her way towards the stairs.

"Sounds like a plan," Cappie replied as he watched Casey ascend the stairs.

Casey and Ashleigh pulled into the salon about an hour later.

"There's the bride," said Ashleigh's mom once they entered the salon. "I thought you may have got cold feet or something."

"Not a chance mom," Ashleigh replied as she sat in one of the chairs so the stylist could get started on her hair.

"Will Charles' mom be joining us?" Mrs. Howard asked.

Ashleigh glared at her mom. She couldn't understand why her mother always insisted on calling Beaver by his real name. She couldn't understand that everyone knows him as Beaver. Even his own parents call him Beaver.

"Yeah, she should be joining us in a bit," Ashleigh replied.

"I can't believe my little girl is getting married," said Mrs. Howard on the verge of tears as she watched Ashleigh get her hair done.

"Mom, seriously, no crying yet," said Ashleigh taking a few deep breaths.

"I just want to tell you that I'm very proud of you Ashleigh," said her mom taking her hand. "With the number of times you called me crying over Fisher…."

Ashleigh interrupted her mom with a glare. Today was no a day to be bringing up Fisher's name.

"I know," her mom continued noticing Ashleigh's glaring look. "I just wanted to point out that you haven't called me crying once about Charles. That says a lot for the relationship. You truly have found a great guy and I wish you guys nothing but happiness."

"Thanks mom," Ashleigh replied giving her a hug.

Beaver's mom eventually joined the group as they all rotated chairs to get their hair and nails done. It was just a couple of hours until the ceremony and all the girls made their way to the church. The bridesmaids got into their dresses first. Casey, Rebecca and Jordan were Ashleigh's bridesmaids since the three of them were her closest friends. They all wore a strapless tea length gown made of satin to match Ashleigh's dress. All three dresses were lilac with a band of deep purple around waist and around the bottom of each dress. They all wore silver heels to accompany the dresses and carried long stem purple calla lilies as their flowers tied together with a long silver ribbon. Casey's bouquet was a little larger than the others signifying that she was the matron of honor. All three girls wore their hair up in a french twist with small curls flowing around their faces. The rest of the outfit was completed with a silver bracelet and necklace Ashleigh had gotten each one of them.

"Aw, you girls look so pretty," said Ashleigh as she looked at them once they were dressed. "I've got some pretty hot bridesmaids."

"Well we need to start making you a hot bride," Casey laughed as she gestured towards Ashleigh's dress.

It took several minutes to get the complicated dress on Ashleigh but everyone in the room became completely speechless once she was dressed. She wore her hair halfway up with loose curls flowing down her shoulders and donned a long veil down the back of her head.

"Beave is going to faint when he sees you Ash," said Rebecca.

"Yeah Ash, you look stunning," added Jordan.

"Eek! I can't believe it's almost time," said Ashleigh.

"Speaking of time," said Casey looking at her watch. "I need to find my husband so I can get your flower girl ready. I'll be back in a bit."

All the girls waved to Casey as she left the room. She didn't have to look hard to find Cappie. She turned to her right to see him walking down the hall towards her. The sight took her breath away. Cappie was in a black tux. The jacket wasn't buttoned so she could see the dark purple vest and tie he had on underneath. He looked handsome as ever. But that wasn't what really caused her breath to be caught in her throat. What really caught her was seeing him hold their daughter on his hip in her white flower girl dress made completely of tool. The two of them made the perfect pair together.

"Well don't you just look gorgeous as ever," Cappie smiled as he approached Casey.

"Ma-ma!" yelled Cadence as she reached out towards Casey.

"You're looking pretty dang good yourself," said Casey as she took Cadence into her arms. "I didn't think you were going to dress her but thanks."

"I have to admit I had the dress on her wrong like four times before I got it," said Cappie with a laugh. "But everything worked out in the end."

"So what have you guys been up to?" asked Casey.

"Just like I said, hanging around Beave's apartment playing some video games and having a chill afternoon with the guys," Cappie replied.

"How is Beaver doing?" Casey asked.

"Well he was calm as ever back at his apartment. But once we arrived here he started to get nervous again," Cappie replied. "How about Ashleigh?"

"She is surprisingly very calm," said Casey. "We just got her into her dress and she looks absolutely beautiful. She's going to leave Beaver speechless."

"I don't know if he can get anymore speechless than he already is," said Cappie with a laugh.

"Well, I guess I should get going back to Ash," said Casey. "I'll see you to walk down the aisle?"

"I'll be waiting for you," Cappie replied.

Casey turned to walk away when Cappie called back to her.

"Oh, I almost forgot," he said handing her a box as she turned around. "It's for Ashleigh. From Beaver."

"Thanks, I'll make sure she gets it," Casey replied.

"And one more thing I forgot," said Cappie.

"Wha—" but Casey couldn't finish her words as Cappie planted his lips on hers in a deep kiss.

"Da-da ewwww," said Cadence while they kissed as she sat on Casey's hip.

"We're OK right?" Cappie asked softly as he backed away and looked right into Casey's eyes, ignoring his daughter's comment.

"More than OK," Casey replied giving him one last peck before heading back to the dressing room with Cadence tow.

Ashleigh found herself alone in the dressing room while Casey went to go get Cadence. Rebecca and Jordan both went outside to get some fresh air. Ashleigh was admiring herself in the mirror when she heard someone gasp behind her.

"I have never seen a more beautiful bride."

"Oh my god! Calvin!" exclaimed Ashleigh as she went up to him and gave him a big hug. "It's been forever since I've seen you."

"Yeah, we talked briefly at the Greek reunion last year but I don't think I've heard from you since then. Thanks for NOT inviting me to your wedding by the way," Calvin said jokingly.

"Wait, yeah, I didn't invite you," said Ashleigh mentally picturing her guest list. "What are you doing here?"

"Heath and I are back together," said Calvin. "And since he's one of Beaver's groomsmen, I get to be his lucky date."

"Aw Calv, I'm really sorry we have lost touch. I feel awful."

"Don't," said Calvin reaching for Ashleigh's hand. "This is your wedding day. No need to have regrets on a day like this."

"So what is going on with you these days?" Ashleigh asked.

"Well I graduate next month and have a job lined up in Detroit where Heath is currently," he replied. "Other than that, just wrapping things up with Omega Chi and enjoying my last couple weeks of school."

"So you and Heath seem to be pretty serious," said Ashleigh.

"Yeah, you could say that," Calvin replied as he flashed Casey a ring on his left ring finger.

"No way!" exclaimed Ashleigh.

"It's nothing legal yet or anything," said Calvin. "But we had a little commitment ceremony over the holiday break."

"Aw, I love how everyone is so happy!" said Ashleigh as she gave Calvin another hug.

"Speaking of happy, I would have never put you and Beaver together," he said with a small laugh. "I was shocked when Heath told me."

"Strange things happen," said Ashleigh shrugging her shoulders. "But no one has ever treated me as well as Beave does."

"And that is why he's your soul mate," said Calvin taking Ashleigh's hands again. "I'm so happy for you Ash. You guys are going to have a great life together. I just know it."

"I have our flower girl!" exclaimed Casey as she walked into the room interrupting Calvin and Ashleigh.

Calvin turned to look at her.

"Calvin! Wow, it's been like forever," said Casey setting Cadence down and giving Calvin a hug.

"I'll say!" Calvin replied. "And who is this little lady?"

"This is Cadence," said Casey running her hand through Cadence's hair.

"Hi!" said Cadence to Calvin.

"Well hello to you," said Calvin bending down and extending his hand to Cadence.

Cadence wasn't really sure what to do so she slapped Calvin a high five. Casey laughed.

"Close enough," said Calvin as he stood back up. "I'll let you two ladies finish getting ready. Best of luck Ash."

"Thanks Calv!" exclaimed Ashleigh as Calvin walked out of the room.

"I didn't know you invited Calvin," said Casey as she bent down and adjusted Cadence's dress.

"I didn't," Ashleigh replied. "I guess him and Heath and like married, but not."

Casey looked up and gave Ashleigh a confused look.

"Long story," Ashleigh replied shaking her head.

"Oh, here," said Casey handing Ashleigh the box Cappie had given her.

"What's this?" she asked taking it from Casey.

"A present from your husband-to-be," Casey replied with a smile.

"Really? Now I feel bad, I didn't get him anything," Ashleigh sighed.

"Just open it," Casey said rolling her eyes at Ashleigh.

Ashleigh unwrapped the paper which revealed a jewelry box. She slowly flipped open the box and gasped.

"What is it?" exclaimed an excited Casey as she moved to stand next to Ashleigh.

"A necklace," Ashleigh replied running her hands over the gorgeous diamond necklace in front of her. The entire chain was made of very small diamonds that led to a heart pendant in the center of the necklace.

"Oh my, it's beautiful," said Casey looking at the necklace. "I'll help you put it on."

Casey took the necklace out of the box and clasped it around Ashleigh's neck. Ashleigh turned to look in the mirror. The necklace couldn't have been more perfect. It matched just right with the earrings she was already wearing and the pendant fell just right on her neck to go with the dress. She wondered how on earth Beaver picked out such a perfect present.

"It's almost time!" exclaimed Rebecca as her and Jordan entered the room. "Only five minutes Ash! The crowd looks great. I think everyone is just about here."

"OK, this is it," said Ashleigh taking a deep breath.

"You'll be fine," Casey replied handing Ashleigh her bouquet of white calla lilies as the girls made their way out of the dressing room.

* * *

After meeting up with Casey to give her Cadence, Cappie joined Beaver, Heath and Wade back in the guy's dressing room.

"Did you see Ashleigh?" Beaver asked as Cappie sat down next to him.

"No, I just met up with Casey in the hallway. But I did remember to give her the present," Cappie replied.

"OK," said Beaver nervously.

"Come on Beave, calm down," said Wade patting Beaver on the back. "There is no need to be nervous. You're marrying a great girl."

"I know," Beaver replied. "I don't know why I'm so nervous. It's not like I'm nervous she's not going to show up or anything. Maybe I'm nervous because this is such a big step in my life."

"It is a big step," said Heath. "But if you love somebody and you know you want to spend the rest of your life with them then there is no reason to not go through with it."

"Speak for yourself Heath," said Beaver. "You're lucky. You're never going to have to go through something like this."

"Well if you must know I already have," replied Heath. "Calvin and I had a commitment ceremony a few months ago."

"Really?" asked Wade. "How come we weren't invited?"

"It was just close family," Heath replied. "But once we make it legal we'll invite you all to one hell of a crazy party."

"You better," Wade replied smiling at Heath.

"Cap, you've been through this before," said Heath. "Do you have any advice for Beaver?"

"Yeah, make sure you go to the bathroom beforehand," Cappie stated.

The boys laughed.

"I'm serious," said Cappie as he calmed down. "I never told anyone this but I had to pee so bad standing up there for so long."

"Got anything more meaningful in there for me?" Beaver asked looking at Cappie.

"I'll tell you what my dad told me," said Cappie turning to look at Beaver. "From this day forward make Casey, well Ashleigh for you, a priority in your life. Marriage isn't easy and there will be times where you fight and go to bed angry. But the key is to not wake up angry. A good marriage is full of sacrifices and compromises along with the successes and happy times. I have no doubt in my mind you and Ash will last forever Beave. You two have something special."

"That was so beautiful Cap," said Beaver as he began to cry.

"OK now, let's be manly here until you see your bride at least," said Cappie patting Beaver on the back. "Once you see Ashleigh cry all you want bro but no sappy stuff here."

Beaver stood up and reached his arms out towards Cappie. Cappie stood up and put his arms around Beaver.

"Thanks for being my best friend man," said Beaver softly. "I don't know what I would do without you."

"Well you certainly wouldn't have a smoothly run business if it wasn't for me," said Cappie jokingly as he backed away trying to lighten up the mood a bit.

"Hey guys, we're ready for you to take your places," said Rusty, one of the ushers, as he entered the room.

"Come here for a sec Rusty," said Cappie calling him over.

Rusty came over as Cappie motioned for all of the guys to huddle around each other.

"This is what life is all about guys," said Cappie. "Having your best friends and your brothers here, watching one of our own marry the girl of his dreams."

"I love each and every one of you guys," said Beaver fighting back his tears once again. "Thank you so much for being here."

"Can I get a 'brothers for life' on three?" Cappie asked putting his hand in the middle of the huddle.

All of the boys stacked their hands on top of Cappie's.

"One, two, three," Cappie exclaimed.

"Brothers for life!" said all five boys in unison.

"Let's do this!" exclaimed Beaver getting pumped up.

Each of the guys patted Beaver on the back as they left the room to get lined up. Shortly after, Beaver met up with the minister who directed him to stand at the altar. It was time to get married.

* * *

**_A/N: So I hope you guys liked the beginning of the wedding so far. Next chapter is the ceremony of course :0) It will be posted sometime tomorrow! Please review!_**


	96. Surely as the Sun

SURELY AS THE SUN

"Ah, so we meet again to walk down the aisle Mrs. Cappington," said Cappie as he approached Casey and Cadence in the hallway.

"Hey handsome," said Casey admiring how good Cappie looked once again.

Cappie then saw Ashleigh come out of the room and stand behind them with her dad.

"Oh my goodness Ash," said Cappie with wide eyes. "You look amazing."

"Thanks," said Ashleigh smiling at him.

"Ready to become a Mrs. Beaver?" Cappie asked smiling back at her.

"I was born ready," said Ashleigh as her smile grew.

Cappie bent down to look at Cadence.

"Ready to be a flower girl?" he asked her.

Cadence excitedly shook her head yes.

"Pet-ty dress," she said with a smile as she pulled at the bottom of her dress.

Cappie laughed at the way she tried to say pretty.

"You look very pretty," he said giving her a kiss on the cheek.

"Oh, we're starting," said Casey as she noticed Jordan and Wade were making their way down the aisle.

"My lady," said Cappie as he stood up and gave his arm to Casey.

Casey leaned over and gave Cappie a quick kiss as she hooked arms with him.

"Love you," she said as they began walking towards the entrance to the church.

"Love you too," Cappie replied.

Ashleigh took Cadence's hand as Cappie and Casey turned to walk down the aisle as she was afraid Cadence would go running after them. But Cadence was very well behaved and waited until she was told to go down the aisle. As she turned the corner she stopped dead in her tracks as everyone had turned to look at her. Everyone began to chuckle at how cute she was. Casey moved to stand in front of the aisle so Cadence could see her. As soon as Cadence saw her mom she turned the flower basket she was holding upside down and dumped all the flowers in front of her and ran down the aisle towards Casey. Everyone in the crowd laughed harder and Cadence just giggled right along as she met her mom in the front of the aisle. Casey and Cadence then took their places as the bridal march began to play.

"OK, here we go," Ashleigh whispered to her dad as she heard the music start.

But Ashleigh didn't move.

"It might help if you move your feet honey," said her dad smiling at Ashleigh.

Ashleigh took one more deep breath and turned the corner to begin her walk down the aisle. Of course the first person she laid her eyes on was Beaver. He looked so handsome in his tux and she saw his eyes grow very wide and a huge smile come over his face as soon as he saw her. He pulled a handkerchief out of his coat pocket when she made it about halfway down the aisle. He was crying. And seeing him cry caused Ashleigh to lose all control of her emotions also as the tears began to flow down her face. She had never been more in love with a man and more sure of spending the rest of her life with him.

"Who gives this woman to this man?" the minister asked as Ashleigh and her dad approached the altar.

"Her mother and I do," Mr. Howard said as he turned to Ashleigh and kissed her on the cheek.

"She's all yours," Mr. Howard smiled at Beaver as he placed Ashleigh's hand in Beaver's.

Ashleigh and Beaver stepped all the way up to the altar and faced each other holding their hands tightly together.

"You look breathtaking," Beaver whispered to her as the minister began the ceremony.

"Dearly beloved, we are gathered here to celebrate the marriage of Ashleigh and Beaver. Each of them has come here without reservations to join themselves in holy matrimony. If there is anyone here who feels this marriage should not take place, please speak now or forever hold your peace."

The crowd was silent.

"Whew," said Beaver playfully wiping his brow.

The minister continued the ceremony with a couple of readings while Ashleigh and Beaver stood there staring intently into each others' eyes.

"Ashleigh and Beaver have elected to say their own vows. Beaver, you may begin," said the minister.

Beaver nervously took a piece of paper out of his pocket and unfolded it.

"Ashleigh," he said taking a deep breath. "I promise to love you as much as I love Kappa Tau and Cheezeritos."

Everyone in the crowd began to chuckle. Cappie especially enjoyed this part of the ceremony as he helped Beaver come up with his vows.

"From this day forward I will listen to all of your complaints about the mall and happily comment on your new clothes as long as they are shown to me during commercial breaks. I promise to try and remember to put down the toilet seat and to replace the toilet roll when it's gone. I promise to not hog all of the blankets at night and leave plenty of cuddle time while we watch America's Next Top Model. I promise to only go on business trips that Cappie approves of and let you spend as much time with Casey as you need. I allow you complete access to my bank account to even spend money on the five hundred dollar shoes you'll only wear once but just had to have."

Ashleigh laughed a little harder at Beaver's last line. It was sort of an inside joke between the two of them when she accidently used his bank card to buy a pair of shoes. When Beaver found out about it Ashleigh persuaded him as to how much she needed the shoes. Six months later Beaver pointed out she had only worn them once and then it became more of a joke than Beaver actually being upset.

Beaver folded up the paper and put it back in his pocket as he took both of Ashleigh's hands into his.

"In all seriousness Ash," he said looking straight into her eyes. "I love you more than life itself and I would do anything for you. I want to experience growing old with you. I want the two of us to have matching recliner chairs when we're eighty-five, sitting next to each other all day fighting over the volume of the TV because I'll be hard of hearing."

Ashleigh chuckled again as a tear escaped her eye. Beaver always knew how to be lighthearted but so romantic at the same time.

"Ash, I came to this place today as a man standing alone," said Beaver squeezing her hands. "And I will walk away from it by your side. Today I cross the threshold with you and enter into a new and lasting lifetime commitment. I am yours today, always, and forever."

Ashleigh began to cry harder at Beaver's last statements. She reached back as Casey gave her a tissue she had been holding on to. Ashleigh wiped her eyes and stuffed the tissue into the top of her dress.

"Ashleigh you may begin your vows for Beaver," said the minister turning to her.

"OK, well, you know I can't compete with your wit," she said to Beaver as she took his hands. "So I decided I was just going to speak from my heart."

Ashleigh cleared her throat. Her heart began to race as she looked deep into Beaver's eyes as her own tears began to cloud her vision.

"Beave, I promise from this day forward to love you for the rest of my life," Ashleigh began. "I promise to be there for you during all times happy and sad. I promise to walk beside you when you need me and back away when you don't. I have never met a nicer, more sincere and compassionate man than you."

The tears began to fall down Ashleigh's face.

"I had pretty much hit rock bottom in my love life when you came along Beaver," her voice cracked. "You made me laugh and taught me how to love again. I feel like the luckiest girl in the entire world. Because of you, I laugh, I smile, I dare to dream again. I look forward with great joy to spending the rest of my life with you, caring for you, nurturing you, being there for you in all life has for us. And I vow to be true and faithful for as long as we both shall live."

Mid-way through Ashleigh's vows Beaver took his handkerchief back out and began wiping the tears in his eyes. Her words were so beautiful and so true. He knew she meant every single word of them.

"Beaver and Ashleigh have chosen rings as outward symbols of the commitment they make today," said the minister after Ashleigh and Beaver were able to calm down. "From the earliest times, the ring has been a symbol of wedding love. An unbroken and never-ending circle symbolizes a commitment to love that is also never ending. May I have the rings please."

Cappie took the rings out of his pocket and handed them to the minister. He considered acting like he lost them like Beaver had done at his wedding but he didn't want to feel like a copycat.

"Beaver, take the ring which you have selected, place it on Ashleigh's finger, and say to her these words: This ring, a gift for you, symbolizes my desire that you be my wife from this day forward."

"This ring," said Beaver as he slid the ring on Ashleigh's finger. "A gift for you, symbolizes my desire that you be my wife from this day forward."

Beaver looked up and smiled at Ashleigh as she took the other ring from the minister.

"This ring," said Ashleigh placing it on Beaver's finger. "A gift for you, symbolizes my desire that you be my husband from this day forward."

Ashleigh and Beaver joined hands and squeezed tightly. They knew the ceremony was almost over.

"Let these rings serve not as locks binding you together, but as keys, unlocking the secrets of your hearts for each other to know, and thus bringing you closer together forever," the minister added.

Something in the minister's last words struck Casey. She glanced past Beaver and Ashleigh at Cappie. He was staring at her, a smile plastered across his face. She mouthed the words 'I love you' to him and watched his smile grow.

"May the sun bring you new energy by day. May the moon softly restore you by night. May the rain wash away your worries. And may you live the days of your lives in peace, love and happiness," said the minister as he smiled at the couple in front of him. "Ashleigh and Beaver, having witnessed your vows for marriage with all who are assembled here, and by the authority vested in me, I announce with great joy that you are husband and wife. You may seal your vows with a kiss."

This was the moment Beaver had been waiting for and dreading at the same time. He wanted nothing more than the kiss to be absolutely perfect. He let go of Ashleigh's hands and cupped his hands around her face, pulling her lips to meet his. Ashleigh slipped both of her hands around his waist and pulled him even closer to her during the kiss. It was absolutely perfect.

"Ladies and gentleman," said the minister as Ashleigh and Beaver backed away from each other and turned to the audience. "It is my honor to present to you, for the first time as husband and wife: Mr. and Mrs. Charles 'Beaver' Thompson!"

Everyone stood and cheered as Beaver and Ashleigh walked back down the aisle and into the lobby of the church. The bridal party followed closely behind.

"Very cute vows," said Ashleigh as she wrapped her arms around Beaver's neck once they reached the lobby. "They were perfect for your personality."

"Why thank you," said Beaver as he leaned towards Ashleigh and gave her a soft kiss on the lips. "Mrs. Thompson."

Ashleigh's heart skipped a beat when she heard Beaver call her that.

"Congrats you two!" said Casey and Cappie as they approached the happy couple. "We couldn't be happier for you."

"Pet-ty," Ashleigh heard a voice below her.

She looked down to find Cadence rubbing her hand up and down the skirt of her dress.

"Cadence Auntie Ashleigh is married!" she exclaimed as she picked Cadence up.

"Yay!" said Cadence as she clapped her hands together.

"Seriously Case, you have the most adorable daughter in the whole world," said Ashleigh handing Cadence to Casey. "I about died of laughter watching her dump all the flowers out and run down the aisle."

"Yeah, it was pretty cute," said Casey giving Cadence a kiss on the cheek.

Soon the bridal party was lined up for the receiving line and several pictures were taken afterwards in the church and outside on the grounds. The reception was being held at the Hilton Chicago downtown. An Escalade limo took the wedding party to the hotel after all the pictures were complete.

"Ladies and gentleman," said the DJ getting everyone's attention. "I would like to announce that the wedding party has arrived."

Everyone took their seats as the DJ announced their entrance.

"First we have ushers Rusty Cartwright and Ben Bennett," started the DJ. "Then we have bridesmaid Jordan Reed accompanied by groomsman Wade Matthews. Next we have bridesmaid Rebecca Logan accompanied by groomsman Heath Miller."

The crowd laughed and cheered as Rebecca and Heath came out wearing sunglasses and feather boas.

"Next we have matron of honor Casey Cappington accompanied by her husband and best man Cappie Cappington," the DJ continued.

Casey and Cappie both walked out in cowboy hats and danced a little jig on their way to the bridal table.

"And then we have the flower girl, Cadence Cappington."

Cadence walked into the hall and slowly made her way to the bridal table, unsure of what to do.

"Let's make you a little more festive," said Rebecca running up to Cadence and putting her feather boa around her neck.

Everyone in the audience cheered as Cadence mimicked Rebecca and strutted her way to the bridal table.

"Remind me to never let her hang out with Rebecca alone," Cappie whispered to Casey as he lifted Cadence up and put her in her chair.

"And now, the moment we've all been waiting for," said the DJ. "It is my pleasure to announce the newlyweds, Ashleigh and Beaver Thompson!"

Everyone stood and cheered loudly as Ashleigh and Beaver came into the reception hall pumping their fists in the air with excitement. They immediately made their way to the dance floor.

"And now, we will start off the night with their first dance as husband and wife," said the DJ as he began to play 'I could not ask for more' by Edwin McCain.

The lights dimmed as a spotlight was put on Ashleigh and Beaver on the dance floor. Beaver and Ashleigh began dancing to the music, their bodies completely touching each other and their faces just inches apart.

"You look so radiant today Ash," said Beaver softly. "I had to really make sure I was the groom when you were walking down the aisle because I never pictured myself with someone as beautiful as you."

"Stop saying that stuff," said Ashleigh as she rested her head against Beaver's. "You're going to make me cry again."

Beaver just smiled as he moved his lips forward and gave her a soft kiss on the lips.

"I can't believe we're actually married," said Ashleigh as she released her lips from his. "It seems just like yesterday we were kissing in the restaurant stock room."

"We have come a long way since then haven't we?" Beaver asked.

"Yeah, we sure have," Ashleigh smiled.

"So I was thinking," said Beaver as he moved his head back a little so he could look into Ashleigh's eyes. "Our apartment represents us living together just as a couple. What do you think about living together as husband and wife and buying a house?"

"Really?" asked Ashleigh. "You think we can afford it?"

"Ash, I own one of the best restaurants in Chicago," said Beaver with a smile. "And if I have enough money to spend on five hundred dollar shoes for you to wear once, I have enough money to buy us a house."

"A house would be so exciting," said Ashleigh.

"Well then it's settled," said Beaver. "After we get back from our honeymoon we'll start looking at houses."

"Sounds amazing," Ashleigh replied as she leaned her forehead back on Beaver's while the two of them danced to the end of the song.

* * *

**_A/N: So what does everyone think so far? I originally had the wedding in one huge chapter but then decided to break it up into two. So you'll get the second installment tomorrow....sorry to kind of leave you hanging :0) _**

**_Weren't Beaver's vows just perfect??? I loved writing that part! Please review and let me know what you think.....I need the motivation! I'm so stuck on chapter 100 right now :0(_**


	97. In Your Court

IN YOUR COURT

After the first dance, dinner was served and the traditional wedding events like the bouquet and garter toss and cake cutting followed. Rebecca appropriately ended up catching the bouquet while Rusty caught the garter. Rusty felt quite awkward putting the garter back on Rebecca's leg with her fiancé and his girlfriend looking on but it was all in fun. It actually made him smile on the inside knowing all the history him and Evan have together and hoping to make him just a tad bit jealous.

The DJ asked all the guests to support the bride and groom and head to the dance floor. Ashleigh was standing off to the side watching as Beaver decided to dance with his grandma for this dance.

"Am I special enough to be able to get a dance with the beautiful bride?" Calvin asked as he came up to Ashleigh.

"I would love to dance," Ashleigh replied as Calvin led her out to the dance floor.

"This is one of the best weddings I've ever been to Ash," said Calvin. "You did a really nice job planning it."

"I would hold that thought," said Ashleigh with a small laugh. "I'm sure Evan and Rebecca's wedding in a couple of months will be a hundred times more expensive than mine."

"Yeah, but you don't need all that money to plan a good wedding," said Calvin. "If you ask me I think Evan invited way too many people. It'll probably be crowded with hundreds of people I don't know."

"You'll know a lot of your brothers," said Rebecca.

"Not really," Calvin replied. "There's only going to be a couple of Omega Chi brothers there because of everyone kind of disowning Evan at the end of his senior year."

"That's a shame," said Ashleigh. "Do you have any idea who you're walking down the aisle with?"

"I told Evan I would love for it to be you," said Calvin smiling at her. "But I guess we'll find out during the rehearsal."

"I hope I get to walk with you too," Ashleigh smiled back at him. "I really missed you. I feel like we have so much to catch up on."

The song ended and the DJ began playing another slow song. Ashleigh and Calvin began dancing together again when Beaver came up to them.

"Think I can cut in?" he asked Calvin.

"Of course," Calvin replied.

He kissed Ashleigh's hand and wished the couple luck as they moved towards the front of the dance floor to begin dancing.

"My turn," said Heath standing in front of him and interrupting his gaze on Ashleigh and Beaver.

"Of course," said Calvin as he wrapped his arms around Heath. "You're looking pretty nice in your tux tonight," he said as they started to dance.

"Thank you," Heath replied. "I can't wait to see you in yours for Evan's wedding. It should be a good time heading back to Ohio and having a good time with our friends."

"Yes it will," Calvin replied as he leaned his head on Heath's shoulder.

The two of them swayed back and forth to the music for a bit.

"We should start planning our legal wedding soon," said Heath breaking the silence. "There's no time like the present."

"I told you, let's wait until I graduate next month," said Calvin lifting his head up to look at Heath.

"Can't we at least pick a date or something?" Heath asked.

"I don't care, whatever date you want is fine with me," Calvin replied. "I'm just looking forward to the party afterwards. That is what is going to be fun."

Suddenly Calvin felt something tug at the bottom of his pants.

"HI!" said Cadence happily looking up at him.

"Well hello," said Calvin picking her up in his arms.

"Is that Cappie's kid?" Heath asked.

"Yeah, this is Cadence," said Calvin. "Say hi to Heath Cadence."

"Hi Heth!" was what came out of Cadence's mouth.

"Aw, she's really a cutie," said Heath as he touched Cadence's arm.

"You ever thought about kids?" Calvin asked.

"Not really," Heath replied. "But that doesn't mean that I don't want kids and you seem like you're pretty good with them."

"Oh yeah, I would love to have kids," said Calvin. "I think we could provide a child with a loving home to grow up in when the time is right."

"Cadence! There you are!" said Evan coming up to Calvin and Heath.

"Are you looking for this?" Calvin asked as he glanced over at Cadence still in his arms.

"Yeah, I was watching her while Rebecca went to the bathroom," said Evan. "I took my eyes off her for like one second and she was gone."

"I guess that shows how great of a father you'll be," said Calvin with a laugh.

"Hey, it's not my fault she's Cappie's kid," Evan joked. "He probably told her to run away from me at the first chance she could."

"Da-da!" exclaimed Cadence as Cappie walked up to the boys.

"What's going on over here boys?" Cappie asked as Calvin passed Cadence over to him.

"I was just introducing Cadence to Calvin," said Evan nervously.

"Nice try bro," said Cappie as he put his hand on Evan's shoulder. "I saw her run as fast as she could away from you when you weren't looking. A father always has his eyes on his child."

"OK, I've been caught," said Evan playfully lowering his head in shame.

"You have a beautiful child Cap," said Heath. "I've never met her until tonight."

"Why thank you," Cappie replied with a smile.

"OK, back from the bathroom," said Rebecca as she approached the group. "Time to get back to dancing."

Evan waved goodbye to the boys as Rebecca pulled him to the middle of the dance floor and wrapped her arms around his neck.

"What were all you boys talking about?" Rebecca asked as they began to dance.

"Nothing, just catching up," said Evan looking over her shoulder.

"Look at me," said Rebecca bringing Evan's face to look at hers. "You lost Cadence didn't you?"

Evan just shook his head yes as Rebecca laughed at him.

"And that is why I love you," she said resting her head on Evan's shoulder.

"You love me because I lose children?" Evan asked in a confused tone.

"No silly," said Rebecca. "I love you because you try to lie to me and I see right through it every time."

"I guess it's a good thing we know each other so well then," said Evan squeezing Rebecca tightly.

"I can't believe this is going to us in a couple of months," she said squeezing him back.

"Yeah, it's going to be an amazing night," said Evan. "I can't wait."

"Me neither," Rebecca stated. "I'll finally be Mrs. Rebecca Logan-Chambers."

"Do you really have to hyphenate your name like that?" he asked. "I thought you would be just Rebecca Chambers."

"But I like the sound of it hyphenated. It sounds important," Rebecca replied.

"I think just having the Chambers name will make it sound more than important," said Evan backing away so he could look Rebecca in the eyes.

"I guess," Rebecca replied bringing her head closer to Evan's. "But we should really discuss this at another time."

"Why is that?" Evan asked.

"Because right now I'm going to be too busy kissing you," she said as she leaned in and planted her lips right on Evan's for a loving kiss.

* * *

Casey and Ashleigh were standing by the bar looking at everyone on the dance floor as the night started to wind down. Casey couldn't help but watch Cappie on the dance floor with Cadence. At one point during a slower song he held her tightly in his arms and swayed back and forth while Cadence rested her head on his shoulder. Casey watched the photographer go up and take a picture of it and she made a mental note to make sure she got one of that precious moment. When a faster song came on Cappie put Cadence on the ground and held her hands as she bounced up and down to the music. Pretty soon she was surrounded by several of the KT brothers just living it up being the center of attention.

"You're daughter is stealing all the attention from me," Ashleigh joked bringing Casey out of her daze on the dance floor.

"Sorry Ash," said Casey.

"I was just joking Case," said Ashleigh. "Cadence has been a perfect addition to the wedding. It wouldn't be the same without her."

"This has been an awesome night Ash," said Casey. "The food was amazing, the entertainment is great and everyone seems to be really enjoying themselves. You sure know how to plan an awesome wedding."

"Aw, thanks Case," said Ashleigh. "But you know I couldn't have done this without you. You were always there to listen to my dilemmas on the color of the napkins and whether or not to have the chocolate fountain."

"I wish I would have turned that down now," said Casey jokingly. "I think Cadence has had like a pound of chocolate tonight with everyone feeding her it. I'm not sure if Cap and I will ever get her to bed tonight."

"Eh, just give her a little of the free alcohol and she'll pass right out," said Ashleigh with a laugh.

"Very funny," Casey said as she rolled her eyes.

A slow song came on and Beaver made his way towards Ashleigh.

"May I have this dance my wife?" he asked.

"My pleasure," said Ashleigh as she took one last look at Casey and followed Beaver to the dance floor.

Casey was staring at Beaver and Ashleigh dancing and so in love when she noticed Cappie walking towards her.

"I don't suppose you would want to dance?" he asked smiling at her.

"Where's Cadence?" Casey asked.

"Ashleigh's mom is playing with her," Cappie replied. "Come on, let's dance."

Cappie took Casey's hand and pulled her out onto the dance floor. He wrapped his hands tightly around her waist as she reached up and wrapped her arms around his neck.

"I'm so happy for Ash and Beave," said Casey. "It's truly been a magical night for them."

"Yeah," sighed Cappie. "I have to admit, I couldn't help but think about our wedding during the ceremony today."

"And why is that?" Casey asked.

"Because it was an incredible day," Cappie replied. "I have never been happier."

"I don't know, I would have to put Cadence's birth a very close second, if not first though," said Casey.

"She was pretty dang cute today wasn't she?" Cappie said with a small laugh.

There was a brief silence between the two of them.

"Cap, I've been thinking lately," said Casey as she got a serious expression on her face.

Cappie gave her a confused look. "About what?"

"About wanting to have more kids," Casey replied.

"Case, just last week you completely freaked out when we tried to make love," said Cappie. "I don't think you're quite ready yet."

"But I love you and you love me," said Casey, a soft expression now on her face. "As long as we love each other, can't we get through anything?"

"We can," said Cappie. "And we have. We've been through some really happy times and some really rough times."

"I just, I just feel like I would regret it for the rest of my life if you and I didn't try just one more time to have another child," said Casey looking straight into Cappie's eyes.

"The ball is completely in your court Case," said Cappie squeezing her a little tighter. "You know I'm always ready to try for another child. I just want to make sure you are completely sure of your decision and not doing it because it's something that I want. As I said before, I want to know that you want it too."

"I know Cap, I understand," said Casey as she leaned her head against his chest.

The song ended a few seconds later. Cappie leaned down and gave Casey a soft kiss before letting her go.

"The ball is in your court Case," he said again as he backed away and headed over to where Cadence and Ashleigh's mom were.

"You OK?" Rebecca asked noticing Casey was still standing on the dance floor spaced out.

"Uh, yeah," said Casey shaking her head and turning to Rebecca.

"I just wanted to tell you that you look really great tonight," said Rebecca. "I was really worried about you last week at the bachelorette party."

"I guess I owe you an apology," said Casey. "And a thank you for taking care of me. I don't know what I would have done without you."

"I was just being a good friend," Rebecca replied. "You know I would do anything for you."

"Thanks Bex," said Casey giving her a hug.

"So, I assume by the way you and Cappie looked a little bit ago things are better?" asked Rebecca.

"Yeah, we're good," Casey replied.

"I'm glad," Rebecca replied with a smile.

There was a brief pause.

"Well Evan and I are going to get going," she said stretching her arms. "We have an early flight home tomorrow. I'll see you in a couple months to do this all over again."

"Yay for all my best friends getting hitched," said Casey wrapping her arms around Rebecca. "Tell Evan I said goodbye."

"I will," said Rebecca backing away. "Call me if you need anything Case. I mean it."

"Same applies to you Bex," said Casey as she waved goodbye to Rebecca.

About a half an hour later Casey was talking with Jordan when Cappie came up to them holding Cadence who was fast asleep on his shoulder.

"I think this is our cue that it's time to leave," he said rubbing his hand on Cadence's back.

"Sure is," Casey replied. "Let's just say goodbye to the bride and groom first."

Casey said a quick goodbye to Jordan and found Beaver and Ashleigh kissing in the corner near the gift table.

"Eh hem," Cappie said clearing his throat.

"Oh, hey guys," said Ashleigh pulling away and wiping her lips. "What's up?"

"We just wanted to tell you that we are leaving," said Cappie. "Our little flower girl has checked out for the night."

"I can see that," said Beaver as he went up and put his hand on Cadence's back.

"Thank you guys so much for being here for us today," said Ashleigh as she gave Casey a hug. "It really means a lot to us."

"You're more than welcome," Casey replied.

"Have fun in Costa Rica," said Cappie shaking Beaver's hand. "Don't do anything I wouldn't do."

"And he'd do just about everything," said Casey with a laugh. "So basically you're free to do whatever you want."

Beaver and Ashleigh also laughed as they said one last goodbye and watched the Cappington family walk out the door.

"I think it wouldn't be a bad idea if the two of us made our way out of here and upstairs," said Ashleigh putting her arm around Beaver's waist and leaning her head on his shoulder.

"I think that sounds like an excellent idea Mrs. Thompson," said Beaver as the two of them headed over to the DJ so he could announce their departure.

The two of them walked out hand in hand as all the guests who were left cheered them goodbye. They made their way over to the elevator and took it up to the 15th floor. Beaver then took the key card out of his wallet and opened the door to the room. Both of them gasped as they looked around. It appeared one of their friends got a hold of a key card and decorated the room for them. There were candles lit all over the bedroom and around the Jacuzzi tub in the bathroom. Rose petals were spread out on the bed in the shape of a heart and there was a bottle of champagne on ice for them to enjoy.

"You don't get much more romantic than this," said Beaver as he picked up the bottle of champagne and popped the cork which went flying across the room.

He poured two glasses and handed one of them to Ashleigh.

"To us," he said. "And to an amazing life together."

"To us," Ashleigh replied as she clanked her glass together with Beaver's.

They eyed each other seductively as they took sips of the champagne.

"Why don't we get in the Jacuzzi," said Ashleigh setting her drink down.

"Anything to get you naked my bride," said Beaver with a sly smile as he approached Ashleigh and began to kiss her.

He began to search the back of her dress for the zipper but was having trouble finding it. At the same time Ashleigh already had his shirt and pants unbuttoned.

"This isn't fair," said Beaver. "This dress is like a chastity belt."

Ashleigh laughed as she turned around and gave Beaver instructions on how to take it off. Once he had it off it slid down to the floor revealing a pink sexy corset Ashleigh had on.

"You like it?" Ashleigh asked noticing Beaver was staring at her with his mouth wide open.

"Yes, yes I do," he stuttered as he ran his hands up and down her waist. "Now take it off."

Ashleigh smiled as they both continued to take each other's clothes off until they were both completely naked. Beaver was kissing her wildly as Ashleigh ran her hands through his hair.

"Screw the Jacuzzi," said Beaver, breathless as he pulled away. "I want you now."

Beaver walked Ashleigh over to the bed and laid her down as he made his way on top of her.

"I love you Mrs. Thompson," he said staring into her eyes.

"I love you too," Ashleigh replied pulling him down to her and kissing him deeply.

* * *

**_A/N: Hope everyone liked the second part of the wedding. Isn't Cappie in his tux holding Cadence as a flower girl just the cutest image ever??? Especially when she falls asleep on his shoulder.....I love that part :0) Keep the reviews coming and let me know what you think. I know a lot of you liked the addition to Calvin to the story so I tried to add him in a bit more this chapter. I really liked how this chapter turned out with the different couples having conversations._**


	98. One Night

ONE NIGHT

It had been two weeks since Ashleigh's wedding. Casey was just putting Cadence down for a nap when the doorbell rang. She quickly covered Cadence up and made her way downstairs.

"Ashleigh!" she exclaimed as she opened the door.

"Oh Case I've missed you so much!" said Ashleigh as she stepped inside and hugged Casey. "I'm sorry I haven't been able to make it over here sooner."

"Come in, come in," said Casey as she shut the door and directed Ashleigh to follow her into the living room.

"So, how was the honeymoon?" Casey asked as her and Ashleigh sat on the couch.

"It was awesome," said Ashleigh with a smile. You should see Beaver, he's got a great tan."

"What kind of things did you guys do?" Casey asked.

"Besides make love?" Ashleigh joked.

"Yes, besides that," said Casey with a laugh.

"Well let's see, we went snorkeling and went on a lot of walks on the beach. Oh and jet skiing. That was an interesting time," Ashleigh replied.

"And why is that?" Casey asked.

"Because I had never been on a jet ski before and it really takes more balance than you would think. So we're like in the middle of the ocean and I leaned too far over when we were making a turn and we tipped the dang thing over. The only thing that I was holding onto was Beaver for dear life when we were going. So as we fell off it I accidently ripped his very expensive Oakley's off his head and yeah, the fishes at the bottom of the ocean floor are probably enjoying them now."

"Oh my gosh!" laughed Casey. "I guess it could be worse though. At least he didn't lose his wedding ring!"

Ashleigh looked at Casey biting her bottom lip.

"He lost his wedding ring!" exclaimed Casey.

"Yeah, we fell again later in the afternoon and it went flying off. He can't blame me for that one though because there was no way I would have been able to rip that off," said Ashleigh. "So we made an emergency call to the jewelry store and they had his new one ready to pick up when we got home. The new one is a half a size smaller so he can hopefully keep it on his hand better. But all in all it was a great time. Waking up every morning cuddled with him while we listened to the ocean waves and looked out our balcony at the amazing view was breathtaking. The hotel staff called me Mrs. Thompson the entire time. It took me a while to actually realize they were talking to me because I hadn't gotten used to being a Mrs. yet."

"I'm so glad you had a great time," said Casey smiling brightly at Ashleigh.

"You were right Case, being a wife is so amazing," said Ashleigh. "Even though a whole lot hasn't changed, everything feels different. Especially the sex. A-maz-ing."

"I told you," said Casey with a small laugh. "And your honeymoon sex was probably a hundred times better than mine because you weren't eight months pregnant."

"Speaking of sex," said Ashleigh changing to a concerned look. 'How are things with you and Cappie?"

"Good question," Casey replied, the smile slowly fading from her face. "I completely fell in love with Cappie all over again at your wedding. He just looked so handsome and seeing him dance and take care of Cadence in her cute little dress was something so special to see. But the two of us still haven't had sex. Cappie has kind of stayed away and not really made any moves. I know he's hesitant because he doesn't want to push me into anything."

"And what about you?" asked Ashleigh. "Have you tried to make any moves?"

"Not really," Casey replied with a sigh. "I thought I was going to the night of your wedding. But we were both so exhausted when we got home we went straight to bed. I just want our first time after everything that has happened be special and perfect Ash. I know I'm ready now."

"Are you ready just to have sex or are you ready to start trying to have a baby again?" Ashleigh asked staring at Casey.

Casey paused and thought briefly before she answered.

"Both," she replied. "I have to at least give having a baby another try. Cadence has been so amazing and I get so excited thinking about having another child to bring the joy to my life like she has."

"Well then I think the two of you need a romantic night tonight," said Ashleigh. "Let me take Cadence with me for the night. Then you can have a surprise dinner with some dessert afterwards if you know what I mean for Cappie when he gets home."

"I can't ask you to take Cadence," said Casey.

"You're not asking," Ashleigh replied. "I'm telling you I'm taking her with me. Beaver is meeting with some mortgage company tonight anyway. Cadence can keep me company while he's away."

"Wait, why is Beave meeting with a mortgage company?" Casey asked.

"Because we're buying a house!" said Ashleigh excitedly.

"Aw Ash that's awesome," said Casey. "Have you started looking at all?"

"Yeah, we started looking as soon as we got home from the honeymoon. We actually found one we really like that's not too far from here. Maybe about five or ten minutes away," Ashleigh replied. "Beaver is meeting with the company to see about financing and stuff like that before we make an offer."

"Wow, you guys sure didn't waste any time," said Casey. "That's awesome that you found one so quickly."

"Yeah, we're pretty excited about it," Ashleigh stated. "The apartment just doesn't feel right living in as a married couple. Plus we should have more than enough finances to afford a house. Beaver got the apartment when he moved here and didn't have hardly any money to his name."

"I remember that," said Casey with a small smile.

"So, let's start planning your night," said Ashleigh excitedly.

"I don't think I ever agreed to it," Casey said hesitantly.

"Come on Case, this is going to be perfect for the two of you."

Casey looked at Ashleigh with a slight uncertainty in her eyes. While she knew she was ready to do this, she didn't think it was going to happen so soon. But there was no time like the present so she stood up and held her hand out to Ashleigh.

"You have yourself a deal," she said as Ashleigh gave her hand to shake it.

Over the next couple of hours the two girls ran around the house trying their hardest to get everything into place. They first rummaged through the kitchen to try and find something for Casey to make for dinner. Then they spent the better part of the afternoon up in the bedroom. Casey went through the massive amounts of clothes in her closet to find just the perfect outfit. She ultimately decided on a short black skirt that showed off her legs perfectly, which she knew Cappie just loved. She paired that with a green and blue wrap top that had a v-neck that showed just the right amount of her cleavage to leave Cappie wanting some more and hugged the curves of her hips. Ashleigh then rummaged through her underwear drawer looking for the perfect bra and underwear set to wear along with it when she came across a piece of lingerie that she didn't even know Casey owned. It was a red corset top that was very revealing given it was made of a mesh-like fabric. With it came a matching red thong in the same mesh-like fabric. Casey explained that someone had gotten it for her as a wedding present but since she was pregnant she never got to wear it. Ashleigh then insisted on her to wear it underneath her outfit as it would drive Cappie wild. Casey was a little hesitant as she had never worn anything like that before for Cappie. She knew he would like it, but she didn't want to potentially ruin the night with too many new things between the two of them. But with much pleading from Ashleigh she was convinced that wearing it would be good for the two of them and agreed to put it on.

After Casey got dressed the two of them found every candle they could in the house and set them up around the bedroom to make some romantic lighting. Ashleigh then helped Casey get started with dinner until she looked at the clock and saw it was nearing five.

"Alright, time for me to get out of here with Cadence," she said going over to Cadence's playpen and picking her up.

Casey went over and kissed her daughter goodbye as she handed Ashleigh the diaper bag.

"Now she usually goes to bed around nine but she can stay up later if she's a little wound up. No juice or sugars after seven or else you'll never get her to bed. And her favorite bedtime story 'Goodnight Moon' is there for you or Beaver to read to her," said Casey, always the organized mother.

"We will be fine," said Ashleigh walking towards the door. "You just think about yourself and your husband tonight and we'll meet up sometime tomorrow to drop her off."

"Thanks Ash," Casey said taking a large deep breath as she opened the door for them.

"You'll be fine Case," said Ashleigh turning to her before walking out the door. "Just relax and go with the flow. That is the best thing to do."

"I will," said Casey. "Thanks for your help today. I don't know what I would do without you."

Casey stood in the doorway and watched Ashleigh put Cadence in her car seat and pull out of the driveway. She put the garage door down once they were out of sight and headed back into the kitchen to continue making dinner. Cappie was usually home around five thirty and she wanted to make sure the food was done by then. As the time grew closer she became a little more nervous thinking about the night. She knew it was the right time for her, she just hoped it was the right time for Cappie too.....

* * *

**_A/N: So I know I left you with a cliffhanger and there wasn't too many exciting things in this chapter BUT I PROMISE you will not be disappointed with the next chapter. I put a lot of effort into writing it so hopefully you guys will like it as much as I do. _**

**_I have to warn you though, I'm not feeling so well today so there is a slim possibility I may not get the next chapter up tomorrow if I'm like throwing up all over the place....LoL. I hate being sick :0( I'm hoping it's just a small bug._**

**_Anyway, also wanted to take this time to let my readers know about the campaign to save Greek! ABC Family just renewed all their shows for another season except for Greek :0( So we have come up with a campaign to help the show and asked everyone to spread the word and participate. The website _****_.com_****_ has all the details for you so check it out. There is a link to the facebook group on the website that you can also go to and join the group. If you live in the US please encourage as many people as you can to tune in on January 25th. I'm sure many of you out there LOVE this show as much as I do and want to see it get another season. Anything you can do will be much appreciated. Thanks!_**


	99. Deeper

DEEPER

Casey began to get a little worried when six-thirty rolled around and she hadn't heard from Cappie yet. She let the herb roasted chicken and scalloped potatoes sit in the oven on the lowest setting to keep them warm, waiting for him to come home. Casey sat patiently in the living room attempting to flip through television stations to keep her occupied. Of course the one day she planned something for Cappie to be home on time for, he's not.

Her excitement for the night was beginning to fade when she finally heard the garage door open around seven thirty. She quickly stood up and adjusted her skirt as she ran into the kitchen. She was just pulling the chicken out of the oven when Cappie opened the door. He came into the kitchen and slammed his things on the counter before realizing what was going on. Casey spun around, startled by the noise, and looked at him.

"Are you OK honey?" she asked as she took off her oven mitts.

"Bad day at work," Cappie replied.

Casey walked over and wrapped her arms around his neck.

"You want to talk about it?" she asked with a concerned look on her face.

"We had some money stolen by one of our employees," he said with a sigh as he put his arms on her waist. "But now that I'm here I'm more excited to know what is going on here. Something smells delicious."

"Well I was hoping to surprise you with a nice dinner," said Casey walking back over to the stove. "I made some herb roasted chicken, scalloped potatoes and mixed vegetables. I hope you're hungry."

"Well now I'm even more sorry I'm late," he said taking a seat at the kitchen table.

"It's OK," Casey replied dipping up plates for the two of them. "I just wished you would have called."

"Wait, where's Cadence?" Cappie asked looking around the room.

"She is at Ashleigh and Beaver's," Casey replied putting the two plates of food on the table.

"Beaver didn't mention her coming over," said Cappie. "I thought he was meeting with the mortgage company tonight."

"He is," said Casey as she gave Cappie a beer and poured a glass of wine for herself. "Ashleigh wanted to take Cadence to keep her company I guess."

Cappie watched as Casey finally took her seat at the table to join him. He noticed how beautiful she looked in her outfit. The short black skirt showed off her smooth legs and the shirt hugged her in all the right places. Cappie pushed those thoughts from his mind though. He knew Casey still wasn't ready for him but he would keep waiting for her, just like he did when they were back in college.

"This chicken is delicious," he said trying to direct his mind to something else.

"Thank you," Casey replied. "I found a recipe online and just kind of ran with it. But I'll make sure to make it more often if you like it."

The rest of dinner was pretty much small talk between the two of them. Cappie explained the situation he had at work with the stolen money. He was late coming home because they actually had to get the police involved and they took a while questioning him. But the money was returned and he was considering on dropping the charges and just firing the employee as punishment but he needed to talk to Beaver before making any decisions.

After dinner the two of them took their drinks outside on the deck and sat on the swing Cappie had bought just a few weeks before. The sun was beginning to set making everything around them have an orange glow to it. The small woods that set behind the house provided them shade from the direct sunlight going down. Even though they had been in the house over two years now, this was the first time the two of them sat out on the deck together. Cappie pulled Casey close to him as they rocked back and forth slowly on the swing.

"Such a gorgeous evening," said Cappie breaking the calming silence between the two of them.

"It is," Casey replied. "I'm glad you got this swing. I never noticed how everything is so calm out here."

"Me neither," Cappie replied. "I always knew we should do something out here but wasn't sure exactly what I wanted to do."

"Maybe we should get a pool, or a hot tub," said Casey like she was struck with a good idea.

"It would be nice," Cappie replied. "But I'm not sure if I want a pool out here with Cadence being so small. All it takes is letting her out of your sight for one second and something could happen."

"You're right," Casey sighed as she snuggled deeper into Cappie's chest, engulfing herself in his familiar scent.

"I was thinking we should look at swing sets," said Cappie rubbing his hand up and down Casey's arm. "Cadence is going to be old enough to enjoy it soon and a nice one would fit perfectly in front of those trees over there."

"That's a good idea," Casey replied. "We'll get the coolest one so all the kids will want to play at our house."

Cappie let out a small laugh. Casey smiled as she felt the vibration of his laugh against her head. There was something very comforting about Cappie's laugh, even if it was just a small one.

"I miss times like this," said Cappie after several minutes. "As much as I love Cadence, it's always good to have time with just my wife. No distractions, just the two of us."

"Yeah," Casey agreed. "It feels like freshman year all over again. Remember how we used to lay in the field outside your dorm on a blanket for hours just looking at the night sky and talking?"

"How could I forget?" Cappie replied. "Half the time you ended up falling asleep and I was left to carry you back up to my room, which was not an easy task I might add."

Casey let out a small laugh.

"Remember the time it started to rain?" she asked sitting up and looking into Cappie's eyes. "We just laid there as the rain pounded down on us like we didn't have a care in the world."

"We didn't have a care in the world," said Cappie softly as he brushed a strand of hair off of Casey's face. "It was just you and me. Nothing else mattered."

"Remember trying to get our wet clothes off once we went inside?" Casey giggled. "I think it literally took you like twenty minutes to get my tight jeans off."

"Oh yeah, they were like melted to your skin with as wet as they were," Cappie smiled back at her. "But it was all worth it making love to you later that night. Once we got all the clothes off."

Casey leaned closer to him. She heard him gasp a small breath as her lips barely grazed his. Casey felt him instinctively put his hands on her waist and pull her body closer to his.

"What do you want Mrs. Cappington?" Cappie asked, his voice barely a whisper but husky and sexy. Just the tone of voice that drove her wild.

"I want…." she said trailing off as she put her lips against his and began kissing him. It wasn't a passionate kiss, she didn't want to start that quite yet. It was more like a needy kiss, one full of love for him and her need to have him close to her.

"You want what?" Cappie asked as he slowly backed away from her so he could look her in her eyes.

"I want you to give me five minutes and then meet me upstairs," she said as she stood up from the swing.

Cappie gave her a confused look as she made her way towards the sliding glass door.

"Five minutes," she repeated with a smile as she went inside and slid the door shut.

Casey ran upstairs to the master bedroom and closed both of the doors behind her. She kicked off her heels and found the lighter Ashleigh had left to light the candles. Before she lit them she turned on some romantic music and took off her skirt and blouse and put a silk pink robe on to cover herself. She couldn't just give him her in the sexy red lingerie right at the beginning. She wanted to see Cappie have to work a little for what he wanted. She then lit all of the candles around the room and turned off the main light. Everything was perfect. Not only did the room have the right amount of lighting but her connection with Cappie already tonight was perfect. She loved reminiscing with him about their past memories. The way he looked at her downstairs made her blush immensely. She knew he needed her just as badly as she needed him. The time was right. Everything was perfect.

Casey took one last look in the mirror before she positioned herself in front of the door to greet Cappie. Her scar was covered by the lingerie and robe she had on but she still knew it was there. But for some reason, tonight it didn't matter as much. It wasn't like the horrid memories of losing her child weren't there. They were just stored in a different spot in her mind tonight. A spot that was locked tightly and not to be opened in the moment she was about to share with her husband.

She heard a light knock on the door and made her way over to open it.

"Can I come in?" Cappie asked as Casey peeked her head outside of the door.

She had to stop for just a moment to look at her husband. He was still in his work clothes, which of course drove her crazy. He had loosened his tie so it was hanging haphazardly around his neck. He also had the top couple of buttons of his green shirt unbuttoned, revealing just a peek at his toned chest for her to see.

"That depends," teased Casey once she realized he was waiting for her reply. "How much do you love me?"

"Now why waste time on words when I can show you?" he asked stepping closer to the door.

"Hmmmmm," said Casey biting her bottom lip. "I may just have to take you up on your offer."

Cappie just smiled back at her, his face just inches away from hers, teasing her with his breath as he breathed deeply against her lips.

"I think you should," he said in a low, sexy voice. "It's a great offer."

Casey smiled back as she opened the door slowly and allowed him in the room. She saw him stop in his tracks once he saw the candles lit all over the room and heard the soft music playing in the background. He turned around just as Casey shut the door and placed her back up against it.

"Now I'm slightly confused Mrs. Cappington," he said as he stood right in front of her. "The décor of the room tells me you want a night of love making with me. But your outfit says that you're ready for bed. You wear that robe to bed every night."

Casey put her hands on Cappie's waist and pulled him against her. She began to kiss the side of his neck as she made her way to his ear.

"I think what's under the robe will give you your answer," she whispered seductively to him.

Casey could hear Cappie begin to breathe heavily at the sound of her voice. She slowly moved her hands underneath his shirt and began to feel his chest as she continued to nibble on his neck. Cappie didn't do anything with his hands. He was like motionless putty at the moment as she ran her hands up and down him and kissed him seductively on his neck. Casey moved her hands down to his belt and began to undo it. Suddenly Cappie grabbed her hands and moved her to look him straight in the eyes.

"Are you sure?" was all he asked, uncertainty in his voice with a hint of hope that she wasn't going to turn him down.

Casey wiggled her hands out of his and grabbed the sides of his face to pull him closer to her. She looked into his blue eyes staring intently at her, begging her for the answer he wanted to hear.

"I have never been more sure about anything," she whispered as she pulled him in for the passionate kiss she had been waiting to give him.

She felt him smile slightly against her lips at her response. It was at that moment that Casey became even more sure herself. This was right. This was her husband, a man that she loved more than life itself. A man she wanted to try and have more children with and spend until eternity with. No one completed her more both physically and emotionally.

Cappie backed away from her kiss and stared at her briefly. Casey thought she had seen a small amount of water swell up in his eyes. Her assumption was confirmed with his next statement.

"I have never been happier to hear you say that," he said, noticeably blinking back the tears.

Casey wrapped her arms around his neck as she began kissing him again, giving him everything she had. She felt Cappie play with the belt to her robe, almost like he waiting for her to tell him it was OK to undo it. Casey finally reached her hands down and undid the tie for him, opening her robe to reveal her sexy red lingerie. She heard Cappie's breath hitch in his throat once her robe was opened. He backed away from her at arm's length and stared at her, his jaw practically hitting the floor.

"I have never seen you look sexier," he said moving his eyes up and down her entire body.

Casey moved things on a little quicker by completely taking the robe off and letting it slide down to the floor. She glanced down to his midsection, seeing how noticeably he was turned on. The sight made her give him a sexy smile as she reached for his shirt and began to unbutton it. She removed his tie over his head and slid his shirt off his back, revealing his smooth, toned chest. She then finished unhooking his belt and slid his pants down his legs. Cappie stepped out of his pants as he began to slowly walk back to the bed, pulling Casey along with him. He finally felt the back of his knees on the side of the bed and sat down, looking at Casey standing in front of him. He ran his hands up and down the sides of her corset looking for a way to reveal his wife's amazing body from it.

"There's a zipper in the back," Casey whispered, noticing Cappie was fumbling around with it.

Once he unzipped it and threw it to the floor Casey straddled him while he continued to sit on the edge of the bed. Cappie immediately wrapped his arms around her and dug his face deep into Casey's breasts kissing them, tasting them, taking in every little part of her that he had missed. He heard Casey moan in pleasure as he took one of her nipples into his mouth and began to play with it with his tongue. He had never wanted her so badly in his entire life and he knew how special this moment was for the both of them. He had to be gentle and it had to be perfect. Cappie lifted his head back up and pulled Casey's lips towards his for another deep kiss, inviting his tongue into her mouth to wrap around hers.

"Oh my god I want you so bad," Cappie moaned as he moved Casey so she was lying on her back against the bed.

Cappie positioned himself on top of her, straddling her between his own legs. He quickly realized the two of them were not going to get anywhere near where he wanted to be with their underwear still on. So he began backing off of the bed while kissing her stomach. He slowly made his way down to the band of her thong and took it into his mouth. He then began to pull it down her legs, only using his mouth.

"What are you doing?" she giggled looking down at him.

Cappie didn't respond. He made his way all the way to her feet and took the pair of underwear off like he was a pro and had done it that way many times before.

"Well in that case," Casey whispered as she sat up and pulled down Cappie's boxers as he was still standing at the edge of the bed. "Much better," she said as they hit the floor, releasing the very prominent bulge that was teasing her when this all started.

Cappie slowly pushed her back down onto the bed as he took one of her legs into his hand and raised it up towards his face. He then began to softly kiss down her leg, starting at her ankle and working his way towards her thigh. He felt her tense up the closer he got to the top of her leg. He heard Casey moan as he acted like he was going to pleasure her with his tongue between her legs. But instead he teased her by taking his hand and brushing her between the legs instead. He felt Casey shiver underneath him as he did this and it made him smile. He still knew all the right places to touch her.

Casey sat up and grabbed his shoulders to pull him down on top of her.

"I am not in the mood to be teased tonight," she whispered into his ear. "I want you to make love to me. I want to feel you inside of me."

This time she felt Cappie shiver as the words she said brushed against his ear. Those were the words that he needed to hear more than anything else. He needed to hear how much she wanted to make love to him, how much she needed him.

Cappie positioned himself to go inside of her but became slightly hesitant. This was going to be the first time since her hospitalization and he knew he had to be gentle. He heard her let out a soft moan as he began to enter her. He tried his best to be as slow and gentle as possible but his need to feel her around him overpowered his will to be gentle just a little.

Casey heard Cappie let out a moan once he was completely inside of her. He leaned down on top of her as he slowly thrusted in and out of her, softly kissing her neck and collarbone.

"I need you Cappie," Casey said, almost breathless.

Cappie moved his face towards her lips and began to kiss her passionately as he continued to thrust in and out of her. Casey wrapped her legs around him tightly as she was trying to get as close to him as possible, so every part of their bare skin was touching each other. She could feel the room start to spin but in a good way. She was dizzy with love for Cappie. He was the only man who could make her feel this way when they made love. She always got completely lost in the moment when they were together, forgetting about everything else that may have been going on her life.

"I love you Casey," she heard Cappie say breaking her from her thoughts.

She began to run her hands messily through his hair.

"I love you too," she moaned as she continued to feel him inside her, completely connected.

Over the next several minutes the two of them took in the moment they were sharing, like it was their first time all over again. Cappie leaned closely to Casey during the slower, more gentle thrusts. But sat up with her legs in the air during the more forceful, needy thrusts. He listened to Casey moan with pleasure and the sound turned him on like never before. He took pride in knowing he was doing everything just right and making Casey feel important and needed.

Cappie began to increase the speed and forcefulness of his thrusts as he rested on top of her. Casey knew he was about to go as she felt the exact same way. The two of them began to pant loudly as Cappie braced his hands beside her on the bed. Casey continued to run her hands through his hair and grip his back tightly, quite possibly leaving several marks. He moved his head down to kiss her again, this time soft and loving. He continued going in and out of her as he backed away and stared deeply into her eyes. He could see her hazel eyes stare back at him with both need and content. Her eyes told him what they were experiencing in this moment was everything she wanted and everything she needed. He then felt her tense up and let out a soft moan. He also moaned at the same time as he finally reached his peak and exploded inside of her. The end was always a magical moment for the two of them. For some reason they always managed to go at the exact same time, like they were completely in sync with each other. Whatever it was, it was incredible.

Cappie collapsed on top of her once he was finished, wrapping his arms around her tightly. A feeling of complete happiness and content had overcome him. He knew how much he needed her. But now that it happened, he realized he needed her much more than he thought. She was everything he needed, filling any void in his life that needed to be filled.

He slowly turned onto his side to look at Casey once his breathing had returned to normal. When he looked at her, something caught him completely by surprise. She was crying.

"Hey," he whispered as he wiped the tears off of her cheeks. "Why the tears?"

Casey looked at him as a small smile came over her face.

"I'm not sure," she replied softly. "I just have all of these emotions running through me right now and crying seemed like the easiest outlet."

"What kind of feelings?" Cappie asked with concern.

"Oh nothing bad," Casey assured him as she stared into his sparkling blue eyes. "It's like it almost felt like our first time. And you remember how emotional I got after we made love for the first time freshman year."

"So these are happy tears?" Cappie asked as he continued to wipe them off her face.

Casey nodded as she pulled Cappie into a soft kiss.

"Come on," she said sitting up in the bed. "Let's get under the covers and cuddle."

The two of them got under the covers and immediately Casey found herself snuggled into Cappie's arms. This is where she felt safe and secure, like nothing could ever hurt her.

"Hey Case," she heard Cappie say above her.

Casey turned her head to look at him as he stared down at her with a sort of sadness in his eyes.

"I didn't……" he hesitated. "I wasn't rough or anything was I? Because I knew I needed to be gentle and—"

Casey cut him off by putting her finger up to his lips.

"It was perfect," she said, still looking deep into his eyes. "I didn't think about the past once while we were making love. You made me feel so secure, I didn't have to."

Casey then surprised him by taking his hand and moving it across the scar on her abdomen.

"The scar may be there to remind me of everything," she said. "But I realized tonight it hurts more to not be connected with you. It's in the past and it's definitely something I'll never forget. But I feel like I have now finally moved on and I'm ready to start the next chapter in our lives together. I'm finally ready to move forward."

Cappie moved his hand up to her face to caress her cheek. His eyes lit up briefly like he knew what she was trying to say. But confusion took over in his eyes, wanting to hear the words come directly from her mouth.

"I'm ready to try again," she finally said as she read his eyes and relaxed her head into the palm of his hand. "Let's try to have another baby."

The words coming from her mouth with like music to his ears. He dove his head down and kissed her as soon as she finished what she was saying. Hearing those words come from her mouth was like the icing on the cake. The night couldn't have been more perfect for the both of them. They were finally ready to start the next chapter in their journey in life together, this stage with a hopefully much happier outcome than the last.

* * *

**_A/N: Whew, what an intense chapter right?!?! I think this is the longest yet and I'm REALLY proud of it. I think it turned out well....hope you guys liked it as much as I did!_**

**_Thanks for the well wishes....I feel much better today :0)_**

**_Also, I'm not sure if the link showed up for you guys in my last post for the campaign to savegreek so what you can do is go to google and type in 'save greek' as the search and the website should be the first thing that comes up. I made the website so I'm always up to any suggestions anyone has to add to it or whatever._**

**_I hope I get lots of reviews on this chapter :0) Thanks for reading! I can't believe chapter 100 is next! CRAZY!_**


	100. Take Our Chances

TAKE OUR CHANCES

Six weeks later Ashleigh and Beaver got the keys to their new house and were ready to move in. Rusty was home for the summer having just graduated with his undergraduate degree. He was planning on starting CRU in the fall for graduate school and just taking the summer off to relax and get things ready for the new step in his life. He pulled up to Cappie and Casey's house and knocked on the door.

"Hey bro!" said Cappie as he opened the door and gave Rusty a hug.

"Hey Cap," Rusty replied as he walked into the house. "How are things going?"

"They're going well," Cappie replied. "Just getting ready to head over to Beaver and Ashleigh's new place to help them unpack."

"Yup, that's why I'm here to get my niece," Rusty replied. "I'm kind of excited to spend the day with her."

"Russy!" Cadence exclaimed as she came running up to Rusty.

"Hey my favorite niece!" said Rusty as he bent down to pick her up. "How are you?"

"O-K!" Cadence replied with a smile.

"Aw Cap, she gets cuter by the day," said Rusty giving Cadence a kiss on the cheek.

"Hey Rusty!" said Casey as she walked down the stairs.

"Hey Case," Rusty replied giving her a hug once she reached the bottom of the stairs.

"Did you give him the diaper bag?" Casey asked Cappie.

"I'll get it now," he said as he walked into the living room.

"So, how are things with Jordan?" Casey asked.

"They are wonderful," Rusty replied. "I'm really missing her though. I'm hoping to make a trip back to Ohio soon to see her."

"What is she doing over the summer?" Casey asked.

"She actually got an internship with a local photographer so that's been keeping her busy."

"That's awesome. I hope she likes it," Casey replied.

"She seems to so far."

"Here is her diaper bag," said Cappie coming back into the foyer and handing it to Rusty.

"What are you two going to do today?" Casey asked.

"I was thinking we might go to the park for a little bit and play there," Rusty replied. "And then maybe head to mom and dad's for dinner before I come drop her back off here."

"We are going to try and be back by like nine," said Cappie. "If we're not home you can just use your key and let yourself in."

"Sounds good," said Rusty.

Cappie followed Rusty outside and put Cadence's car seat into Rusty's car for him.

"Be a good little girl for Uncle Rusty," said Cappie once Cadence was in her car seat.

"O-K da-da," Cadence replied as Cappie leaned down and gave her a kiss.

Cappie stood in the driveway for a couple of minutes as he watched Rusty drive down the road.

"Where are you at sweetheart?" Cappie asked as he went back into the house.

"In the living room," Casey replied.

Cappie made his way into the living room and sat next to Casey on the couch.

"That was really nice of Rusty to take Cadence for a while since mom and dad are going to have her all next week while we are in Ohio for Rebecca and Evan's wedding," said Casey.

"I'm sure Cadence is excited to have some time with him too," Cappie replied.

Casey turned to Cappie and smiled.

"What's that look for?" Cappie asked.

"We're all alone," said Casey softly as she leaned closer to Cappie and began kissing his neck.

Cappie smiled and laughed nervously at the shivers Casey was causing in his body. He wanted so badly to give in to her but he knew he couldn't.

"We promised we would be at Beaver's like ten minutes ago," said Cappie moving away from her.

"Are you sure you don't want to have just a quick one right now," Casey pouted.

"I'm sure," said Cappie giving her a kiss and standing up from the couch. "Besides, we've been having sex like every day for the past several weeks. I think I may just need a break."

"Aw, did I wear you out?" Casey joked as she stood up and wrapped her arms around Cappie's neck.

Cappie fought with everything he had to not pull Casey closer to him and make love to her right then and there.

"How about a rain check?" he asked grabbing her arms and pulling them away from his neck.

"You're too good of a friend," Casey grunted as she made her way into the kitchen. "I bet if Ashleigh was coming on to Beaver like I was to you he would drop what he's doing and be late to see you in a heartbeat."

"There's nothing wrong with just being a good friend," Cappie smiled at her as he grabbed his keys and made his way out to the door.

Beaver and Ashleigh's new home was only a five minute drive from Casey and Cappie's house. It was a one story brick house with three bedrooms and two bathrooms. Cappie pulled into the driveway in front of the two car garage and made his way into the house followed by Casey. The fresh smell of paint hit them as soon as they entered the house.

"We're here!" exclaimed Cappie as he walked into the front door.

"Oh yay! I'm so glad you guys are here!" exclaimed Ashleigh making her way towards them from the kitchen. "I'm just working on putting some of the kitchen stuff away if you want to help me Case."

"Sure," Casey replied.

"And Beaver is back in one of the bedrooms if you want to go and find him," continued Ashleigh directing her attention to Cappie.

Cappie nodded his head as he went into the master bedroom to find Beaver. The bedroom wasn't quite as big as the one at his house but it still was a decent size with a large bathroom off of it. Cappie found Beaver in one of the walk-in closets attempting to put up some closet organizers.

"Need some help?" Cappie asked as he walked into the closet.

"I think I need a lot more than help," said Beaver letting the shelf he had in his hand fall to the floor. "I never realized how hard home improvement can be."

"Luckily I had Casey's dad to help me," said Cappie as he helped Beaver pick up the shelf. "He helped me with most of the handy work."

"So I heard things are going well with you and Casey now," said Beaver as started to drill the shelf onto the wall.

"Yeah, things couldn't be better," Cappie replied.

"Any signs of a new little Cappie?" Beaver asked.

"I'm not sure," said Cappie. "With Cadence I didn't see how Casey acted or anything for the first seven weeks she was pregnant so I wouldn't even know what to look for."

"That's true," Beaver stated. "I wouldn't know what to look for with Ashleigh either."

"Speaking of," said Cappie as he drilled the last screw into the wall. "Have you and Ashleigh talked about having kids at all?"

"Yeah, we talked about it," Beaver replied. "And really, we just decided to not try and whatever happens, happens. You know how much I love Cadence. I think it would be cool to have a child of my own."

"A little Beaver," said Cappie with a laugh. "That would be a sight to see."

Beaver laughed also as he directed Cappie into the bathroom with him to work on some shelving in there.

"I don't see it happening anytime soon," said Beaver as he picked up a shelf off of the floor. "I think I want to just be married for a little while and enjoy that."

"Yeah, I understand," said Cappie. "No need to rush into anything."

Meanwhile, both girls were busily putting away pots and pans in the kitchen.

"I don't think I have ever seen so many pots and pans Ash," said Casey as she put several of them away.

"Well I am married to a chef," Ashleigh replied. "He's got quite the collection."

"I'll say," Casey replied as she finished putting away the last of them.

"So are you excited for Rebecca's wedding coming up?" Ashleigh asked as she directed Casey to put some of the dishes away.

"Actually I am pretty excited," Casey replied. "It will be nice going back to Ohio and having the whole week to relax and see our old friends."

"Isn't it weird for you though," asked Ashleigh. "You know, seeing your ex-boyfriend get married. The same ex-boyfriend you pictured marrying so many years ago?"

"If I wasn't married to Cappie then, yes, it probably would be really awkward," replied Casey. "But I'm happy and I wish nothing but the best for the two of them. They're perfect for each other and really, deep down, I was never perfect for Evan."

"Gosh, now that I'm thinking about it, you're life should totally be written as a soap opera," said Ashleigh.

"What are you talking about?" Casey asked.

"Well let's see, you're about to be a bridesmaid in a wedding for your ex-boyfriend who cheated on you with the girl he's now marrying. The same girl you used to be enemies with and who is also an ex-girlfriend of your husband."

"Eck," said Casey scrunching up her nose. "I guess when you put it like that it does sound very soap opera-ish."

Ashleigh just laughed as she continued to put away several items in the kitchen.

"This is really a nice house Ash," said Casey. "I can't believe it has a pool in the backyard. You know we're going to have some awesome parties out there this summer."

"I'm already thinking about a Fourth of July one after Rebecca's wedding," said Ashleigh. "I'll get to wear that American flag bathing suit I bought last year. It will be so cute."

"And how come I have never witnessed this bathing suit?" Beaver asked as he entered the kitchen with Cappie.

"Probably because you were too busy taking it off of me on the honeymoon," Ashleigh replied.

"OK, OK, too much information," said Cappie playfully plugging his ears.

Cappie watched as Beaver went over to Ashleigh and began kissing her passionately.

"Geeze, do I have to cover my eyes too?" Cappie asked.

"Oh give them a break," said Casey walking over to Cappie. "They're newlyweds. They're supposed to act like that."

Once Beaver and Ashleigh were able to pry themselves away from each other the four of them continued unpacking the house and moving furniture in different parts of the rooms. Since they were all sweaty from the hard work they were doing they decided to just order a pizza for dinner. Ashleigh and Beaver left to go and get the pizza, leaving Cappie and Casey to finish up a few things in the house.

"OK, I'm done," Cappie moaned as he plopped down onto the couch after finishing the task Beaver had given him of hooking up the surround system on the TV.

"Amen to that," said Casey as she plopped down next to him. "I hope we never have to move. I hate moving."

There was a brief silence between the two of them, each of them taking the moment to relax from the hard day's work. Eventually, Casey turned to face Cappie and took his hand into hers.

"Uh, something on your mind?" Cappie asked becoming a little worried with Casey's expression.

"I, uh, didn't tell you because I didn't want to get anyone's hopes up," she began.

Cappie scrunched his eyebrows together, looking at her very confused. Casey stared at Cappie and squeezed his hand.

"I've gotten morning sickness the past three mornings," Casey finally blurted out.

Cappie sat up straight and turned to her immediately.

"Really?" he asked, a smile beginning to show on his face.

Casey shook her head yes.

"Oh wow, OK, so what do we do now?" Cappie asked squeezing her hand.

"Well I was wondering if you wanted to change things up a little bit this time," said Casey with a small smile. "The last two times I've gone with Ashleigh to do the whole home pregnancy test thing and I was wondering if this time we could share that experience together."

Cappie increased the smile on his face as he looked Casey straight in the eye.

"I would love to," he replied. "Now let's go."

"Cap," said Casey as he stood up and tried to pull her off of the couch. "Did you forget Ash and Beave are out getting pizza right now? We can go get the test when we leave here."

"But I want to know now," whined Cappie.

"Another hour isn't going to kill you to wait," said Casey standing up and wrapping her arms around his waist.

"Fine," said Cappie reluctantly.

The two of them kissed softly and finished up cleaning some things in the house until Ashleigh and Beaver got back with the pizza.

"Cap, you seem awfully hungry," said Ashleigh noticing Cappie was eating his pizza rather fast.

"Yeah, well, working hard around here has made me hungry," he replied shoving the crust of the piece of pizza he had in his mouth.

Casey shot him an evil eye as he wasn't being very impolite. Cappie just shrugged his shoulders back at her.

"So can we treat you guys to a movie or something?" asked Ashleigh as she took her plate into the kitchen. "It's the least we can do for all the help you've done."

"No, no, that's fine. We really need to be getting home anyway," said Cappie grabbing Casey's hand and pulling her towards the door.

"I thought you said Rusty wasn't going to bring Cadence back until nine," said Beaver. "It's only seven-thirty. We have plenty of time."

"I guess I'm just really tired," said Cappie changing his excuse. "We'll be back tomorrow though if you want."

Casey gave Ashleigh an 'I'm sorry' look as Cappie pulled her out the door and into the Jeep.

"You were pretty rude in there," said Casey as she got into the car.

"It doesn't matter, they're our best friends," said Cappie. "They'll understand."

Casey just rolled her eyes as Cappie backed out of the driveway and drove to the closest drug store.

"Go on, you go get it," said Casey not moving once Cappie parked the car.

"Me? Oh no, I don't think so," said Cappie crossing his arms in front of him.

"If you want to know so badly then you'll go in there and buy it," Casey stated.

Cappie looked over at Casey and let out a large sigh.

"You're really going to make me go in there and buy a pregnancy test by myself?" he asked.

"Yup," was all Casey replied, trying her hardest not to smile at the thought of Cappie buying the test.

"You're lucky you might be pregnant," said Cappie opening the door to the Jeep. "And that I love you."

Casey was able to let out a small laugh as the door shut and Cappie went into the drug store. He stood in front of the tests for several minutes. He couldn't realize how there could be so many of them when they all did the same thing. Finally he came to the reasoning that the most expensive ninety-nine percent accurate one was the best to get and took it up to the cashier. It was a young teenage boy who couldn't hold his smile in as he rang it up.

"Just don't even ask dude," said Cappie as he took out his credit card. "Once you fall madly in love with a girl you will be doing the same thing."

The cashier didn't even respond as he gave Cappie the bag and watched him run out of the store.

"There," said Cappie throwing the bag at Casey as he got into the Jeep.

"Nice choice," said Casey as she looked at the test inside the bag.

Then Cappie couldn't help but laugh. He wanted so badly to be mad at Casey for making him buy the test but he really couldn't. Her last comment broke his edge and he reached over and took her hand. Casey smiled as she turned and looked at him. She was actually shocked Cappie went in and bought the test. She thought for sure they would be in the Jeep for hours arguing who was going to go in and she was determined to not back down.

Cappie parked the Jeep in the garage and they both ran inside the house and upstairs to their bedroom.

"OK," said Casey taking a deep breath. "I'll go in and take it. You can just sit here on the bed. That's what Ashleigh usually does."

"Yes master," said Cappie as he took a seat and waited patiently on the bed.

Casey slowly walked into the bathroom and took the test. She set it on the sink, the same way she has done in the past, and walked back out to the bedroom.

"Well?" Cappie asked as she sat next to him.

"Nothing yet," said Casey. "It takes a few minutes to process."

"Oh," Cappie replied.

The next five minutes felt like an eternity for the both of them. Cappie sat twiddling his thumbs while Casey stared out the bedroom window.

"I think it's been five minutes," she finally said looking at her watch.

"Go ahead and look then," said Cappie becoming more anxious.

Casey stood up and then quickly sat back down.

"Why don't you do it?" she asked.

"Me?" Cappie asked. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah, I think it would be good for you to see it first," Casey replied.

Cappie turned to her and surprised her by kissing her on the lips.

"Whatever it says," he said backing away. "I still love you."

"Love you too," whispered Casey as Cappie stood up and walked into the bathroom.

Casey sat on the bed for what felt like an eternity. But in actuality Cappie was back out of the bathroom seconds later holding the stick. His face was expressionless, giving Casey no clue as to what the result of the test was. She looked at him with anxious eyes, pleading him to tell her yes or no to if she was pregnant.

Suddenly Cappie leaped on top of her and pinned her to the bed. He stayed there for several seconds just staring into Casey's eyes until he finally held the test up for her to see.

"Congratulations mommy," he said as he got the biggest smile ever on his face.

"Really?" Casey asked as tears swelled up in her eyes.

"Really," Cappie replied brushing the side of her face. "We're going to have another baby."

Casey immediately wrapped her arms around Cappie and pulled him as close to her as she possibly could.

"I can't believe this happened so quickly," she said backing away from him and wiping the tears off her cheeks. "The doctor said it was probably going to be harder to get pregnant after everything that happened."

"Well what can I say, I guess my little soldiers are just good marchers," said Cappie with a laugh.

"Oh, OK, super sperm," Casey laughed as she rolled her eyes.

Things became quiet between them and a look of sadness overcame Casey's face.

"Cap, I'm kind of scared," she finally said. "After everything that happened before—"

"I know," Cappie interrupted squeezing her tighter. "All we can do is just take this one day at a time and I think a lot of your fears will be lifted once we get an ultrasound that shows that the baby is actually in the right place."

"I know, you're right," Casey stated. "But can we just keep this between the two of us until we know things are OK with the baby?"

"Of course," Cappie replied. "My lips are sealed until you tell me it's OK to shout it to the world."

For the next hour the two of them laid in bed, cuddling, not saying too much to each other. Each of them was happy about the new baby but deep down Casey wasn't the only one who was scared. Cappie thought about everything as he laid there with Casey resting in his arms. He almost lost Casey with the last pregnancy. He knew this time around he had to be just as protective of her, making sure she was doing everything she was supposed to do and not stressing herself too much. But with those thoughts aside, Cappie had a much better feeling about this baby for some reason. This time everything was going to work out. He just knew it.

* * *

**_A/N: Yay for new baby! Hopefully this time will work out just fine for them. Glad you guys liked the last chapter. Anyone else notice my chapters are getting longer and longer??? Before they were all like under 2000 words and lately I've been up in the three and four thousands.....crazy! _**

**_Please review....I only have one more chapter written after this one and I'm in some dire need of motivation :0( The start of Rebecca and Evan's wedding week is coming up in the next chapter :0) The next several chapters should be interesting......I've got lots of ideas.....as long as I actually write them.....LoL!_**


	101. Where's the Love

WHERE'S THE LOVE

Three days later Casey woke up with her usual run to the bathroom. Morning sickness had plagued her once again and she was vomiting just about every morning now. Cappie walked into the bathroom as she was sitting in front of the toilet.

"Are you OK?" he asked kneeling down beside her.

"Do I look OK?" Casey sarcastically asked looking up at him and rolling her eyes.

"OK, so probably a stupid question," said Cappie sitting on the floor. "This is just new for me. I wasn't really in your life when you went through all this stuff with Cadence."

"I know," Casey replied. "And it certainly is much better with you here."

Cappie took his hand and rubbed her back.

"It's going to be OK," he said looking into her eyes.

Casey turned to the toilet and began vomiting again. Cappie instinctively took her hair into his hands and held it back for her.

"I have no idea where I'm even getting this stuff to throw up," said Casey sitting back down against the bathtub and wiping her face. "I haven't eaten anything yet this morning."

"Are you sure you're going to be able to make the trip to Ohio?" Cappie asked. "We're set to leave in a few hours and I'm just not sure you're well enough to go."

"I'm fine Cap," grunted Casey. "That's why they call it morning sickness. I should be over it in about an hour. Then I'll be back to normal."

"I'm just worried it might be too much for you," said Cappie sincerely.

"I can make it, that's not a problem," said Casey. "What I'm worried about is letting Rebecca down at her bachelorette party. Obviously I can't drink which I'm sure is what she is planning for all of us to do."

"She'll understand," said Cappie. "Rebecca was the one encouraging you to have another kid as soon as possible anyway so she could have a ring bearer."

There was a brief pause as Casey reached for the toilet but didn't vomit. It was a false alarm.

"Speaking of a ring bearer," said Casey as she leaned back against the bathtub again. "Are you hoping for a Cappie Jr this time around?"

"I would be lying if I said I wasn't," Cappie replied with a smile. "But at the same time I would be just fine with another girl. Sure it would be weird being the only male in the house but at least I can protect all of you."

"I really don't care one way or another," said Casey. "All I want to do is find out that the baby is healthy. That's all that matters to me."

"Too bad you couldn't get into see Dr. Snyder sooner with Rebecca's wedding and all."

"It's OK," said Casey. "I have an appointment when we get back. Hopefully all the festivities of the week will keep my mind off things too."

"I hope so," Cappie replied.

"Well, I think I'm done for the morning," said Casey standing up. "Time to go and get Cadence ready for grandma and grandpa's."

Cappie followed her into Cadence's room. Cadence was standing up in her crib when they walked in.

"Hi ma-ma!" she said holding her arms in the air for Casey to pick her up.

"Hi sweetheart," said Casey picking her up and giving her a kiss on the cheek.

Casey put Cadence down as Cappie sat in the rocking chair. Cadence immediately went up to Cappie and climbed in his lap.

"Hi da-da!" she exclaimed.

"Hello," Cappie replied as he also gave her a kiss.

Cappie watched as Casey got a suitcase out of the closet and began putting several of Cadence's clothes in it while he played with her.

"Daddy's going to miss you this week," Cappie said to Cadence. "But I'm sure you'll be a perfect angel for grandma and grandpa."

Cadence just cooed as she reached out and grabbed Cappie's nose.

"Ow, ow, ow, ow," said Cappie playfully. "Why do you always grab my nose?"

Cadence just giggled as she squeezed harder on Cappie's nose. Cappie eventually grabbed her hand and took it off of his nose. He looked into her big blue eyes and smiled. He couldn't have asked for a more perfect daughter. Cappie looked up at Casey who was staring at the two of them. He smiled at her thinking about the new bundle of joy that was on the way. It finally felt like his life was moving forward and he loved every bit of it.

"I love you Cadence," Cappie said looking back down at her.

"Wuv you da-da," Cadence replied reaching her arms around his neck for a hug.

Casey spun around as the words came out of Cadence's mouth. She looked at Cappie as he put his arms around Cadence and hugged her back.

"Awwww," said Casey as she walked over and sat on the ottoman in front of the rocking chair. "I can't believe she just said that."

All Cappie could do was just smile back at Casey. Tears were beginning to sting in the corners of his eyes. Even if his daughter didn't quite know what love meant, he still felt like the luckiest guy in the world hearing those words out of her mouth.

Eventually Cappie let go of Cadence and turned her around to face Casey.

"Tell ma-ma you love her too," he said.

Cadence took a few steps towards Casey so she was standing on the ottoman and wrapped her arms around Casey's neck.

"Wuv you ma-ma," she said.

Now it was Casey's turn to cry. She squeezed Cadence as tightly as she could as the tears streamed down her face.

"Ma-ma loves you too Cadence," she said. "Ma-ma will always love you."

"Ma-ma sad," said Cadence as she let go of Casey and saw that she was crying.

"No, ma-ma is happy," Casey replied wiping the tears off of her face. "Ma-ma is happy because she loves you lots and lots."

Cadence just smiled at Casey as she got down off the ottoman and went over to grab some toys out of her toy box.

"Come here," said Cappie softly as he pulled Casey in his lap.

He wrapped his arms around her tightly and kissed her on the cheek.

"That's the reason we're going to have more kids," said Casey. "It doesn't get any better than hearing that first 'I love you' come from your daughter's mouth."

"So true," said Cappie. "It's amazing how quickly she's picking up on words now."

"Yeah, we should probably be careful with what we say around her," said Casey with a little laugh.

The two of them watched Cadence play with her toys for a few more minutes before they all headed downstairs for breakfast. After breakfast Casey finished packing for the trip and around eleven they were off to her parent's house.

"Russy!" exclaimed Cadence as she rushed into the house and found Rusty sitting in the living room.

"She sure loves her Uncle Rusty," said Mrs. Cartwright as Cappie and Casey entered the house with Cadence's things.

"Thanks again for watching her for the week mom," said Casey. "It really is saving us from having to drive back and forth from Ohio to here since Rebecca planned her bachelorette party this weekend and the wedding is next weekend."

"You're very welcome but you know I would watch my little granddaughter at anytime," Mrs. Cartwright replied. "What are you guys going to be doing during the week?"

"I'm not sure about the boys," said Casey. "But we've got a lot of things planned with Rebecca such as dress fittings and spa appointments."

"Sounds like fun," her mom replied.

"We should really get going if we want to get there at a decent time," said Cappie putting his arm around Casey's shoulders.

"OK," Casey replied as she let go of Cappie walked into the living room to see Cadence.

"Mommy and daddy are leaving now sweetheart," she said bending down to look Cadence in her eyes.

"Go!" said Cadence as she reached her arms out towards Casey.

"No baby, you can't go," said Casey. "You're staying here with grandma and grandpa and Uncle Rusty for a little while."

Cadence got a sad expression on her face.

"Princesses don't get sad," said Cappie bending down next to Casey. "Mommy and daddy will see you real soon. You are going to have a great time with grandma and grandpa. And then Uncle Rusty is going to bring you to see us in Ohio so you can be a beautiful flower girl again."

Cadence just stared at her dad, not really understanding much of what he just said.

"I love you," said Casey as she kissed Cadence and gave her a hug.

"Bye bye ma-ma," said Cadence.

Casey backed away without looking at Cadence. She didn't want her to see that she was starting to cry.

"Be a good girl for da-da OK?" Cappie asked holding his hand up.

Cadence gave him a high five and giggled. She loved playing with her dad. Cappie quickly scooped her up in his arms and began blowing raspberries on her stomach. Cadence was in an uproar of laughter trying to push her dad away.

"OK, I love you sweetheart," said Cappie finally stopping and putting her on the couch next to Rusty.

"Wuv you," Cadence replied as she waved her hand bye to her parents and turned her attention to Rusty.

"Give us a call when you're on your way Rusty," said Cappie as they walked out the front door. "We'll meet up at the hotel to get Cadence."

"Will do," Rusty replied. "See you guys in a week."

"Have a good time you two," said Mrs. Cartwright as she shut the door behind them.

"Whew, that was a little harder than I thought," said Casey wiping the tears off her cheeks. "I don't know what I'm so emotional about things when it comes to her."

"I have an idea," said Cappie as he put his arm around Casey and looked down at her stomach.

"Guess you're right," said Casey as they got to the Jeep. "No wonder why I've been crying at the smallest things lately. It's all about the raging hormones."

Cappie laughed as he shut the door and went over to the driver's side.

"So I know you said you didn't want to tell anyone," he said pulling out of the driveway. "But I assume something is going to have to come out tomorrow at Rebecca's party. You can't just not drink and assume no one will get the hint."

"I know," said Casey looking at the ground. "I guess it's unavoidable in that case."

Cappie reached his hand over and rested it on top of Casey's. He knew she was nervous about telling people without knowing for sure that everything was OK.

"Your friends will be very excited for you," said Cappie. "And I'm sure they'll be very respectful of your wishes to keep things low key until we know everything is OK."

"I know," Casey replied. "I'm just kind of nervous about telling them. It is a lot sooner then anyone probably thought would happen."

"There's nothing wrong with that," said Cappie. "Ashleigh knows we are trying to have another child. She'll just realize how super my sperm really is."

"Alright, enough about your super sperm," said Casey with a laugh.

A few minutes later Cappie pulled into Beaver and Ashleigh's driveway to pick them up to head off to Ohio.

"Jeeze, you have enough bags?" Cappie asked as he loaded several into the back of the Jeep.

"Just the essentials," Ashleigh replied with a smile as she got into the back of the Jeep.

Soon the four of them were off to Ohio. The drive there was uneventful. They mostly made small talk about the restaurant and married life. It was around midnight when they arrived at the hotel. They checked into their rooms and decided to call it a night after such a long drive.

Cappie woke up the next morning to an empty bed once again. He knew Casey was probably having an awful time in the bathroom once again. He couldn't understand why she got morning sickness so bad with being pregnant and he felt horrible that she had to go through such a thing.

Several minutes later Casey made her way out of the bathroom and climbed back into bed.

"Hey sweetheart," was all Cappie said as he put his arm around her and squeezed her tightly.

"I'm not sure if I'm going to make it to breakfast with Ash and Beave," she said nestling into his chest.

Before Cappie could reply his cell phone rang next to him.

"Hey douche bag," he said picking it up.

"Hey numb nuts, how are you doing?" Evan replied.

"I'm doing well, just relaxing in bed with my beautiful wife," said Cappie. "What are you up to?"

"Wait, I just got off the phone with Rebecca and she told me she was with Casey and Ashleigh," said Evan somewhat concerned.

"Well Casey's right here but I haven't seen Ashleigh yet this morning. Maybe she's with her," Cappie replied. "Case and I are supposed to meet Ash and Beave for breakfast in a little bit."

"Could you just check and make sure she's with Ashleigh for me?" Evan asked.

"Sure dude," said Cappie as he grabbed Casey's phone and called Ashleigh.

"Hey Ash, is Rebecca with you?" Cappie asked when she answered the phone.

"No, why?" Ashleigh asked.

"Oh," Cappie replied softly. "Rebecca I guess told Evan she was with you and Casey."

"I haven't talked to her in a couple of days," Ashleigh replied. "I hope everything is alright."

"I'll call you back in a bit," said Cappie. "I've got Evan on the other phone."

Cappie hung up with Ashleigh and went back to Evan.

"Sorry dude, she's not with Ashleigh," he said into the phone.

"What the hell?" said Evan.

"Just call her back and talk to her," said Cappie. "She's probably just planning something special for you and lied to you to cover up where she was going or something."

Evan took a deep breath.

"Yeah, you're probably right," he replied. "I'll call you back later."

"OK, catch you later," said Cappie as he hung up the phone.

"What is going on?" asked Casey as she sat up and looked at Cappie.

"Rebecca told Evan she was with you and now he's all worried about her because she's obviously not with you and Ash," said Cappie.

"Give me my phone," said Casey sternly.

Cappie handed it to her and she dialed Rebecca's number. The phone rang and rang and rang until her voicemail picked up.

"Bex, it's Casey," she said. "I was just calling to see what you were up to. Call me back as soon as you get this."

Casey gave Cappie a worried look as she hung up the phone.

"Let's not get too ahead of ourselves here," said Cappie in a calm voice. "She maybe didn't hear her phone or she's in a place where there is no reception. Let's not freak out too much about this."

"So when should I start freaking out then?" Casey asked crossing her arms in front of her.

"Look, if we haven't heard anything in a couple of hours we'll start worrying just a little," he said putting his hand on her arm. "But until then let's just relax and enjoy our day."

"OK," said Casey grudgingly as she leaned in and gave Cappie a soft kiss on the lips.

* * *

**_A/N: Hmmmm.....I wonder what's going on?? Anyone else worried or just think Rebecca is just being Rebecca?_**

**_I can't believe I reached chapter 100 yesterday. It really didn't hit me until I started reading your reviews mentioning it....LoL. Yeah, this story has gotten a lot crazier then I think anyone ever planned! But I guess if you guys keep reading and want me to keep writing then I'll keep going! Thanks again for the reviews....keep them up :0)_**

**_And don't forget to check out the savegreek website and help the show from being cancelled. I would be forever sad if it does get cancelled :0( But looking forward to only 1 week and 1 day until the new episodes start! WOO HOO!_**


	102. Runaway Run

RUNAWAY RUN

"These pancakes are delicious," said Ashleigh taking her last bite. "I'm going to go and get more."

Ashleigh went up to the buffet to get more pancakes as Beaver turned to Cappie.

"Are you sure Casey is feeling OK?" Beaver asked. "I hate that she had to miss breakfast with us."

"Yeah, she didn't get much sleep last night," Cappie replied looking down at his plate. "She just needed to rest a little bit more."

Beaver rolled his eyes at Cappie.

"What?" Cappie asked taking a drink of his coffee.

"I think she's pregnant," said Beaver bluntly.

Cappie tried his hardest to hide his smile but he couldn't. It soon spread over his face as he attempted to hide it behind his napkin pretending to wipe his face.

"I knew it!" said Beaver reading his best friend's face.

"Shhh," Cappie said leaning closer to Beaver. "We don't want to tell anyone until we know everything is OK this time around."

"Not even Ash?" Beaver asked looking at Ashleigh who was making her way back to the table.

"Casey is probably going to tell her tonight at the bachelorette party," said Cappie. "So let's just keep it between us for now."

"Hey honey," said Beaver nervously as Ashleigh sat back down at the table.

"Did I miss something?" Ashleigh asked.

"Oh no, just talking about Evan's crazy bachelor party we're throwing," said Cappie trying to cover for the two of them.

"I didn't think you guys were doing anything," said Ashleigh.

"We may have changed our mind," said Cappie. "I'll have to talk with Calvin and some of the other groomsmen to see if they are up to doing something or not."

"Oh, OK," stated Ashleigh appearing to buy the boys' little lie.

Ashleigh was just finishing the rest of her pancakes when Evan and Calvin came bursting into the dining room.

"Alright, I'm officially worried now," said Evan coming up to the table.

"Well hello to you too," said Ashleigh rolling her eyes at Evan.

"I'm serious," said Evan. "Rebecca isn't answering her phone. It's been almost two hours since I talked to her and at that time she told me she was with you and Casey. Wait, where is Casey?"

"She's up in the room sleeping," said Cappie turning to Evan.

"Have you guys tried calling her at all?" Calvin asked.

"Casey tried when we first heard she wasn't around," said Cappie. "But we haven't tried since."

"Here, let me try," said Ashleigh pulling out her cell phone.

All of the boys stared at her intently as she called Rebecca.

"No answer," said Ashleigh hanging up the phone once she got to Rebecca's voicemail.

"Where in the hell could she be?" asked Evan, noticeably frustrated.

"Come on, let's all go upstairs to my room," said Cappie. "We'll make some more phone calls and figure things out from there."

Everyone followed Cappie up to his hotel room. Cappie stopped just outside the door.

"Wait here everyone," he said. "I need to make sure Casey is presentable before I let you all in."

Cappie unlocked the door and went into the room.

"Case?" he asked walking into the room.

"Right here," said Casey as she walked out of the bathroom.

"Are you feeling OK?" he asked walking up to her.

"Yeah, I took a shower a little bit ago and it helped," said Casey sitting on the edge of the bed. "How was breakfast?"

"Good," Cappie replied. "But I've got Evan, Calvin, Ash and Beave waiting to come in here because they are worried about Rebecca."

Casey went over to the door and let everyone in the room.

"What is going on guys?" she asked as everyone found places to sit around the room.

"No one can get a hold of Rebecca," said Evan. "And I'm worried."

"It's not like her to just go off and not call or anything," said Ashleigh.

"I think we're jumping to conclusions here," Cappie piped in. "She clearly lied to you Ev about where she was going. Like I said before, she's probably just out doing something for you for the wedding and doesn't want you to know."

"Then why is she not answering for Ashleigh or Casey either?" Evan asked.

"Because she knows she's been caught in the lie and doesn't want to face anyone yet," said Cappie.

"I'm going to call her dad," said Casey. "He may have heard from her recently."

Everyone quieted down as Casey called Mr. Logan.

"Hey Mr. Logan it's Casey."

"Well hello Casey, how can I help you?" Mr. Logan asked.

"I was just wondering if you've heard from Rebecca recently," Casey replied. "We haven't been able to get a hold of her."

"I saw her earlier this morning," said Mr. Logan. "She told me she was going for a drive."

"She didn't say where she was going?" Casey asked.

"No, sorry she didn't," Mr. Logan replied. "She's supposed to meet me for lunch later this afternoon. I can have her call you when I meet up with her."

"Yes, please," said Casey. "I would really appreciate it."

"Will do Casey," Mr. Logan replied. "I'll catch you later."

"OK, bye Mr. Logan," said Casey as she hung up the phone.

"Well?" Evan asked.

"Rebecca is supposed to meet her dad for lunch this afternoon. He's going to have her call us when they meet up," said Casey. "So I think until then we all just need to cool off and relax."

"Thanks Case," said Evan. "I at least feel a little bit better now."

"Good," Casey replied. "So what should we all do while we wait?"

"Let's go swimming!" said Beaver.

"Are you serious?" Ashleigh asked him. "I doubt that will even work because Calvin and Evan don't have any swimsuits."

"Actually Heath and I are staying at this hotel too," said Calvin. "I bought my suit and I'm sure one of us has a pair of shorts Evan can wear."

"Sweet, let's go then," said Beaver taking Ashleigh's hand and pulling her towards the door.

Evan and Calvin followed them out the door to also get changed.

"I don't know if I'm going to feel comfortable in my bathing suit Cap," said Casey once everyone had left the room.

"Sweetheart, you're only like four weeks pregnant," said Cappie as he rummaged through the suitcase for their swimsuits. "You're not going to be showing or anything."

"I know," Casey replied. "But I just feel like I'm all bloated and pregnant."

Cappie stopped what he was doing in the suitcase and went over to Casey.

"You look beautiful," he said putting his hands around her waist. "No one is going to say anything. I promise."

"OK," said Casey giving him a quick kiss and turning towards the suitcase.

"Besides, I-already-told-Beaver-you're-pregnant" said Cappie as quickly as he could, making sure to add a fake cough in.

"What? I didn't understand a word you just said," said Casey as she changed into her suit.

"I said that I already told Beaver you were pregnant," said Cappie turning away so he didn't have to see Casey's reaction.

"Cappie…" Casey whined.

"I'm sorry, I couldn't help it," Cappie replied. "He told me he thought you were pregnant since you weren't feeling well this morning and I couldn't keep the smile off of my face. So obviously he guessed based on my reaction."

"Does Ashleigh know too? Is Beaver going to tell her?" Casey asked in a frustrated tone.

"No," said Cappie as he began to change into his swim trunks. "I told him that you were going to tell the girls tonight. Beaver keeps his word, you don't have to worry."

"I hope so," said Casey as she put on a t-shirt and shorts to cover up her swimsuit.

Cappie put his arm around her tightly and the two of them walked out of the room and down to the pool. Since it was late morning the pool was empty except for the six of them. Casey found Ashleigh lounging in one of the chairs and went to go sit next to her.

"Aren't you going to get in?" Casey asked.

"Maybe a little later," said Ashleigh. "I'm waiting for my breakfast to settle before I get in."

"Probably a good idea," Casey replied as she sat down and watched Cappie get into the pool with Evan, Calvin and Beaver.

"So are you excited for the party tonight?" Ashleigh asked.

"Yeah, it should be a good time," Casey replied continuing to stare at the boys in the pool.

"Something wrong Case?" Ashleigh asked. "Are you worried about Rebecca?"

"Maybe just a little," Casey replied, although the real reason she was spaced out was having to tell all the girls about being pregnant later tonight. "It's not like her to not even answer the phone. Rebecca's phone is always attached to her hip."

"I know," said Ashleigh softly so the boys couldn't hear. "Do you think she like got cold feet or something?"

"I don't think so," Casey replied. "She's always been so excited about the wedding every time I've talked to her. And I know she loves Evan, there is no question about that."

"Yeah, you're right," said Ashleigh. "She's probably just somewhere out of cell phone service range or something like that."

A few minutes later Calvin came over and joined the girls.

"Are you ladies getting in?" he asked sitting down while he dried himself off with a towel.

"We were just talking a little bit first," Casey replied.

"About Rebecca?" Calvin asked.

"Yeah," Ashleigh sighed. "We're trying not to worry but it's hard not to."

"I understand," said Calvin. "Did I tell you I got cold feet before Heath and I had our ceremony?"

"No, you didn't," Ashleigh stated as she turned to him and gave him an intrigued look.

"Yeah, the day before the ceremony I went to a local bar. And I sat there. For like ten hours."

"Really?" asked Ashleigh. "What happened? Why did you do that?"

"To this day I still don't know," Calvin replied. "I knew that Heath was the one. I guess I was just worried with actually taking the final step."

"Did you drink a lot while you were there?" Casey asked.

"Yeah, a nice combination of diet coke and water," Calvin replied with a laugh. "I've never been much of a drinker so I still wonder of all places, why I went to a bar."

"Yeah, that does seem a little odd for you," Ashleigh replied. "So what finally made you get up and leave?"

"Believe it or not a random guy at the bar next to me," said Calvin with a small laugh. "He just really gave me some good insight about life and love. I personally think he was extremely drunk but in some weird and profound way he made complete sense."

"Did you have people calling you like every second while you were gone?" Casey asked.

"Oh yeah," Calvin replied. "Eventually I turned my phone off which probably made them even more upset. But I just needed a little time to myself."

"I can totally relate to that Calv," said Ashleigh. "But Rebecca has an entire week until her wedding. I don't understand why she would be doing this now. The timing makes me think like it's something else that is going on."

"Well hopefully her dad will call soon and we can all forget this even happened," said Calvin.

"OK, the pool has been filled with entirely too much testosterone," said Cappie walking up to the girls. "Time to get in."

"I don't know Cap," said Casey.

"Alright, that's it," said Cappie walking over to Casey and picking her up off the chair.

"Hey! Cap! What are you doing?!" exclaimed Casey as Cappie threw her over his shoulder.

Cappie didn't reply. He just took Casey and threw her in the pool. Everyone laughed as Casey came up for air.

"That wasn't funny!" said Casey who was actually laughing herself.

"Sure it was," said Cappie as he jumped into the pool next to her and quickly pulled her up against him.

Next thing Ashleigh knew Beaver began to get out of the pool and walk over towards her.

"Protect me Calvin," she said jokingly as she took Calvin's hand.

"Uh, I don't think I stand much of a chance against your husband," said Calvin pulling his hand away from Ashleigh's.

"Smart man," said Beaver with a smile. "Now Ashleigh, are you going to go nicely or am I going to have to throw you in like Cappie did to Casey?"

Ashleigh let out a loud sigh. Beaver began to bend down and pick her up.

"OK! OK! I'll go nicely!" yelled Ashleigh as Beaver put her down and waited patiently while she stripped down to her bathing suit.

The two of them walked over to the pool and Beaver surprised Ashleigh by quickly pushing her in.

"Hey! I thought you were going to be nice!" she said as she came up for air.

"I was," Beaver replied. "I at least let you get your clothes off."

The six of them stayed in the pool for the next two hours. Calvin found a beach ball and they played a three on three volleyball game. It was Cappie, Casey and Evan versus Ashleigh, Beaver and Calvin. Since Calvin and Beaver were so athletic they had quite the advantage on the other team and their team won most of the time. But the six of them had a good time playing and that was all that mattered.

Afterwards everyone went to their respective rooms to shower and change their clothes.

"That was fun," said Casey as her and Cappie got into their room.

"Yeah, I could tell it kind of took everyone's mind off of what is going on with Rebecca," Cappie replied.

"I know something that will take your mind even further off that topic," said Casey pulling Cappie close to her and kissing him.

"Mmmmmm," Cappie moaned. "I'm thinking maybe a shower together to conserve some water is in order."

"Sounds wonderful," Casey replied with a smile.

The two of them began to kiss passionately. Cappie quickly had the top of Casey's bathing suit off and onto the floor. Casey was just reaching for Cappie's swim trunks when her cell phone rang.

"Don't get it," said Cappie softly as he kept kissing Casey.

"It might be Rebecca or Mr. Logan," said Casey pushing him away. "I have to get it."

Cappie sat down on the bed disappointed as Casey answered the phone.

"Hello?" she said.

"Casey, it's Senator Logan."

"Hey, have you heard from Rebecca?" Casey asked.

"That's why I was calling you," he replied. "She never showed up to lunch."

"She didn't?" said Casey as her heart dropped down into her stomach. "Have you been able to contact her?"

"No, she's not answering her phone," Mr. Logan replied. "Do you have any idea what is going on with her?"

"I wish I did," Casey replied as she sank down on the bed next to Cappie.

"Well I'm going to make some more phone calls," said Mr. Logan. "Let me know if you hear anything from her."

"Of course," Casey replied. "Please let us know if you hear anything also."

"I will," he replied. "Goodbye."

"Bye," said Casey softly as she hung up the phone.

"This doesn't sound good," said Cappie turning to look at Casey.

"Rebecca never showed up to lunch with her dad," Casey replied. "I think now it's time to start to get worried."

* * *

**_A/N: Hey everyone! I'm pretty excited because it looks like the story picked up some new readers over the weekend :0) I got several new story alerts and favorite story clicks so that's exciting. Plus I had the highest amount of hits to the story yesterday with over 1,100.....crazy! Any new readers are free to leave reviews....I'd love to hear what you think!_**

**_Also exciting is that there is only one week until new episodes start! YAY!!! I think I'm going to be going crazy with anticipation this time next week....LoL!_**

**_OK, I think that's all I have to say for today.....more developments in the Rebecca drama coming in the next chapter :0) Thanks for reading everyone!_**


	103. Eyes and Ears

EYES AND EARS

About a half an hour later everyone was showered, dressed and back in Cappie's room. Once everyone was present Casey broke the news that Rebecca never showed up to lunch with her dad.

"What the hell?" exclaimed Evan as he stood up and threw his arms in the air.

"Just stay calm Ev," said Cappie standing and putting his arm on his shoulder. "No one is going to get anywhere getting all upset and angry right now."

"I'm about to call the cops," said Evan.

"It's only been a few hours," said Beaver. "I think it's a little too soon to be calling the cops."

"Then what do you suggest we do Beaver?" snapped Evan as he walked closer to Beaver.

"OK, OK," said Calvin standing up and getting between Evan and Beaver. "This is not the time to be arguing and fighting."

Evan backed away and sat back down in his chair. Beaver just shot Evan a mean look. He's never really liked the guy, even if he is good friends with Cappie.

"Does she have like a GPS or something like that on her car or on her phone?" Casey asked. "Maybe we can track where she is by using that."

"No, her GPS was stolen in her car a while back and she never got another installed," said Evan. "And the account for her cell phone is in her name, there is no way I could gain access to that."

"I can pretend to be her and call them," said Ashleigh.

Everyone turned to Ashleigh and gave her pleasing looks. This idea may actually work. Ashleigh and Beaver went out into the hall to make the call while the others continued to brainstorm in the room.

"Has she said anything to you Ev?" asked Cappie. "Like that she was nervous about getting married or needed to go somewhere or anything?"

"The only thing I can think of is that she asked me if I was completely sure I wanted to marry her a few days ago," Evan replied. "But I just attributed that to her needing to hear that I loved her and couldn't wait to marry her so I didn't think much of it."

"You think she was having doubts?" Casey asked.

"I didn't think so," said Evan. "But now that this is happening, I'm more convinced that maybe she is having doubts."

"Maybe she didn't run away though because of cold feet," said Cappie. "Maybe it's something else."

"Oh god," Evan muttered.

"What?" Calvin asked.

"What if she got into a car accident and is in a coma in a hospital somewhere?" he asked. "Or what if she got kidnapped or something?"

"That's not really what I was thinking of when I said something else could have happened," said Cappie.

"But it's a possibility," said Evan standing up again. "All the more reason why it's time to call the cops."

"Hold on, hold on," said Casey opening her phone. "Let me try Mr. Logan again and see if he's heard anything."

Everyone watched Casey as she called Senator Logan.

"Casey! Have you heard anything?" Mr. Logan answered the phone.

"No," Casey uttered. "I guess you haven't either."

"No," he replied. "I just got off the phone with her mom and she hasn't heard anything. And I've tried calling Rebecca several more times with no luck either."

"What do you think we should do?" Casey asked.

"I think I have to call the police," said Mr. Logan. "I'm not sure of what else to do."

"Yeah, I understand," said Casey. "I just hate to get them involved and this turns out to be just a big mix-up."

"It's not like Rebecca to do this," said Mr. Logan. "She usually always answers her phone."

"OK, well, keep us posted if you hear anything," said Casey.

"I will," Mr. Logan replied.

"Bye," said Casey as she hung up the phone.

"He's calling the police isn't he?" asked Evan sitting back in his chair as Casey got off the phone.

Casey just nodded her head yes.

"Well at least someone is on my side about calling the cops," Evan continued.

"It's not that we're not on your side dude," said Cappie. "We just think it's a little premature to be doing it. Everyone will feel pretty dumb if all this is just because she decided to take a drive in the country where she doesn't get cell phone reception."

"Well that was a waste of time," said Ashleigh as her and Beaver came back into the room.

"Why's that?" Cappie asked.

"Rebecca now has her phone off," Ashleigh replied. "The GPS tracker won't work unless it's on."

"Mr. Logan is calling the police now," said Casey. "Hopefully they will be able to help us get to her and figure out what is going on."

"I don't know about you guys but I just can't sit here," said Evan standing and making his way towards the door.

"Where are you going?" Casey asked.

"To look for her," Evan replied. "I'm going to hit up all her favorite places to shop, eat and relax. She's got to be around town somewhere."

"I'll go with you," said Ashleigh standing and following Evan.

"Me too," said Calvin also following Evan.

"I guess we'll stay here and wait by the phone," said Casey. "We'll call you if we hear anything."

With that, Ashleigh, Evan and Calvin exited the hotel and got into Evan's car.

"Let's go to the spa first," said Ashleigh. "They make you turn your phone off in those places. That would be the most logical explanation."

"Sounds like a good start," said Evan as he pulled out of the hotel and towards Rebecca's favorite spa.

"Evan, you need to slow down," said Calvin as Evan began to speed towards the spa once he got out onto the road.

"Oh, sorry," said Evan as he backed down on his speed a little. "I guess I'm just a little anxious."

"It's understandable," said Calvin. "I just want to make sure that everyone, including Rebecca, makes it home safely. We don't need to get in a car accident."

"Ash, did Rebecca say anything to you?" Evan asked. "I know you two talk a lot."

"I haven't talked to her in the past couple of days," Ashleigh replied. "The last time we did talk she was pretty stressed about the wedding though."

"How so?" asked Evan.

"Just all the little details she still had to accomplish," said Ashleigh. "Like the seating chart for the guest list and the dress fittings and the final appointments with the florist and photographer. It just seemed like a lot was piling up on her."

"I told her with the amount of people we were inviting we should have hired a wedding planner," said Evan. "But she was totally against it. She said she could handle everything on her own."

"Rebecca's always been a strong and independent woman," said Calvin. "I'm not surprised she didn't want to get a wedding planner to help."

"Here we are," said Evan as he pulled into the parking lot. "Why don't you go inside and ask around Ash while we circle the parking lot. We'll come back to pick you up."

"OK," said Ashleigh as she got out of the car and went inside.

The boys nervously searched the parking lot for Rebecca's car but found no sight of it. They then drove back up to the front of the building to wait for Ashleigh. She came out a few minutes later with a slight smile on her face.

"The lady in there said Rebecca was here earlier this morning for an emergency massage," she said getting in the car. "I talked to the woman who gave her the massage. She said Rebecca wasn't very talkative but was very tense and stressed. She also mentioned that her phone kept vibrating throughout the massage and finally Rebecca turned it off."

"OK, I guess we have a start," said Evan. "Did they say about what time she was here?"

"About eleven-thirty," Ashleigh replied as Evan pulled out of the parking lot. "She was here for about an hour but didn't say anything as to where she was going afterwards."

"Call Casey and let her know about this," said Calvin.

Ashleigh pulled out her phone and called Casey to let her know what was going on. Casey said they still hadn't heard anything and that the police were currently with Senator Logan getting the details of what was going on.

Over the next two hours the three of them drove around town looking at several of Rebecca's other favorite places to go. Unfortunately each one of them was a dead end. No one had seen Rebecca since her massage earlier in the morning.

The sun was beginning to set as they made their way back to the hotel to catch up with the rest of the group.

"Did you find out anything else?" Casey asked as soon as they walked in the door.

"No," replied Ashleigh. "No one has seen her since this morning."

"Shhh everyone, Mr. Logan is on," said Cappie.

Everyone sat around the TV in the room to see Senator Logan on the six o'clock news.

"As most of you know," he began. "My daughter is getting married next weekend. But something has happened to Rebecca today. No one has heard from her since this morning. She is not answering her phone and her fiancé Evan and we, her family, are becoming worried. Rebecca was last seen around noon today at the Serenity Garden Health Spa. If anyone has any clues to her whereabouts or any information we urge you to call the Cyprus Rhodes police department."

"Mr. Logan!" the reporters began to shout after he finished.

"I can't watch this," said Evan as he stormed out of the room.

"I'll take him to my room," said Calvin following him out the door. "Let us know if you guys hear anything."

"We will," said Cappie barely taking his eyes off the television.

"Evan!" Calvin called to him down the hall.

Evan stopped and turned around to face Calvin. His expression was sad and he looked like he was about to cry.

"Come on man, let's go to my room and cool down a bit," said Calvin putting his arm around Evan and walking down towards his room.

As Calvin unlocked the door Evan's cell phone rang and his heart skipped a beat. But his excitement quickly faded when he saw it was his mom calling.

"Hey mom," said Evan answering the phone as he followed Calvin into the hotel room.

"Evan! What in the hell is going on?" his mom yelled into the phone. "I'm sitting here watching the six o'clock news and all of a sudden I hear that my son's fiancé is missing?"

"We're really not sure what is going on mom," said Evan. "Everything is probably just getting blown out of proportion."

"Well you better hope not!" his mom replied. "Do you know what this could do to our name Evan? What are we going to do if everyone finds out she ran off because of a case of cold feet? I knew she was a loose cannon."

"You know what mom," said Evan starting to shout. "I really don't have the time or the patience to deal with you right now. I'm going through a really rough time and all you care about is how this is going to affect the Chambers name? I have nothing more to say to you."

"Evan—" was all he heard his mom say as he hung the phone up on her.

"Screw her!" said Evan loudly as he threw his phone against the wall, causing it to break into several pieces.

Calvin just stood there, unsure of what to do at this point. He knew that Evan had a temper but he'd never seen him this upset. But quickly Evan's anger became too much for him and he collapsed on the bed, burying his head in his hands. Calvin went over and sat next to him.

"I'm sorry Ev," he said putting his arm around him.

"My parents are worthless," said Evan. "All they care about is their damn name. My mom didn't even act like she cared about my feelings just a second ago."

"Well, you do have several friends who care about your feelings," said Calvin. "We've all been calling and searching all day trying to figure out what is going on with Rebecca. And sometimes your friends are the best kind of family to have."

"You sure got that right," Evan replied. "I just wish we could figure out what is going on with Rebecca."

"We all do," Calvin replied.

"I guess I can't really call her now huh?" said Evan as he stood up and picked the pieces of his shattered phone up off of the floor.

"Yeah, guess so," Calvin replied. "But she knows plenty of other numbers like Casey's and Ashleigh's so I wouldn't worry."

"I know," Evan replied. "I was just hoping she would call me first."

"Why don't we go and grab a drink at the bar?" Calvin asked standing up.

"I don't think getting drunk is really going to solve my problems man," said Evan.

"I'm not saying you should get drunk," said Calvin. "I just saying maybe a drink will help calm you just a little and take your mind off of things until we hear more."

Evan thought about what Calvin said for a few seconds.

"Alright, we'll go have a couple of beers," Evan finally said as they walked out of the door.

"I'll text Casey and let her know your phone isn't in working order," said Calvin with a small laugh. "That way they can call me if something comes up."

"Good plan," Evan replied as they got into the elevator to head down to the bar.

Ashleigh, Beaver, Casey and Cappie finished watching the press conference with Senator Logan. The press mostly asked questions that they already knew so now they were left to sit around and wait for phone calls in hopes of someone who knew where Rebecca was.

"I'm getting kind of hungry," said Ashleigh. "Do you guys want any dinner?"

"Yeah, food does sound pretty good," said Casey as she turned off the TV.

"We could make a run out to McDonalds or something if that is alright with you," said Beaver.

"Yeah, that's fine with me," said Cappie.

"Me too," Casey replied.

Cappie and Casey wrote their orders down and Beaver and Ashleigh left to go and get the food.

"I really can't believe this," said Casey. "What a way to start our trip huh?"

"Yeah," mumbled Cappie. "I just hope she's OK. I would hate for something bad to happen to her right before the wedding."

"Talk about being stressed out though," said Casey. "I thought this was supposed to be a stress free trip."

"Is anything in our lives ever stress free?" Cappie asked grinning at Casey.

"Guess you're right," said Casey grinning back at him. "But on the bright side, all this stuff with Rebecca has caused me to not think about the baby once. Well, until just now."

"I guess this is one way to keep your mind off of it," said Cappie. "But probably not the best way."

"No, probably not," Casey replied. "And here I thought I would be stressed about telling everyone at the bachelorette party tonight."

Casey then gasped.

"Oh my! The party!" she said. "I guess I need to start calling the girls and tell them it's off. And then probably cancel all of our reservations huh?"

"Yeah, I would think that's probably the best idea at this point," Cappie replied.

Casey grabbed the phone book out of the bedside table and took it over to the desk on the other side of the room. She then began calling several of the places to let them know the party was off for the night.

Cappie laid back on the bed deep in his thoughts. He kept trying to think of places Rebecca could have gone and why she wasn't answering her phone. He was broken from his thoughts when he felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. He about choked in shock when he saw that it was a text message from Rebecca. Cappie looked over at Casey who was busily talking on the phone when he opened his phone to look at it.

"_Fields have eyes and woods have ears_" was all it said.

But that was all Cappie needed to read to know exactly where Rebecca was. He quickly stood up off of the bed and went over to Casey and kissed her on the cheek.

"I have to go. I'll be back later," he said.

"Wait, hold on," said Casey to the person she was talking to on the phone. "Where on earth are you going right now?" Casey asked Cappie as she covered the phone with her hand.

"Just something I have to do," Cappie replied grabbing his keys. "Trust me."

Cappie didn't even let Casey respond as he made his way out the door and to the Jeep. He knew exactly where Rebecca was and apparently it was his job to find her.

* * *

**_A/N: OK so I'm VERY sorry for not getting a chapter up yesterday. I didn't have a choice though. I came home from work all ready to post it and when I turned on my computer I had no internet access! It was out for pretty much the whole night for some reason. I think some cable lines came down near my house. And by the time it came back on it was pretty late and I didn't want to post it too late so here it is today. Again, I'm sorry :0(_**

**_That aside....what did everyone think of the chapter? Why is Rebecca calling out to Cappie of all people?? You'll find out in tomorrow's chapter :0) Unless my internet acts up again....LoL.....but I think it's all good now :0)_**


	104. Woods and Fields

WOODS AND FIELDS

The twenty minute drive to campus was full of mixed emotions for Cappie. On one hand he was upset at Rebecca for not making any communication with someone earlier, just to let them know she was OK. On another hand he was sympathetic for her because he wasn't really sure what was going on inside her head at the moment. Maybe this just wasn't about Evan, maybe it was something more for her. And on the final hand he was confused. Why did Rebecca reach out to him of all people? Why didn't she contact Evan, the man she's supposed to marry in a week?

Casey had already tried to call him twice since he left. It killed him to not answer the phone but he knew as soon as he talked to Casey he would tell her what was going on. And from Rebecca's text message, she didn't want anyone else to know quite yet.

When Rebecca and him first started fooling around years ago the words 'eyes' and 'ears' would be their code words for each other. It was during their 'secret sex' period where they didn't want anyone to know what was going on between the two of them. Basically when 'eyes' and 'ears' were around they were just normal acquaintances, nothing more.

After about a month of 'secret sex' they decided to go public and make their relationship official. When their relationship was secret it was easy for the two of them to sneak around. But all their secret spots were suddenly flooded with other people once they went public with their relationship. The only place they could find that gave them total seclusion was an area just off campus, behind the Kappa Tau house. Cappie laughed on the inside thinking about all the 'secret places' he had with his girlfriends. Casey and his secret place was the Lite and Easy bar, coincidently where she found him the night everything started between the two of them. Rebecca and his secret place was a field. Yes, not the most glamorous place in the world but it was perfect for them at the time. It was actually a small opening surrounded by the woods behind the Kappa Tau house. He found the place when he moved into the house sophomore year. Even though he loved Kappa Tau and the partying, he needed a place to just get away once in a while. Freshman year that place was the Lite and Easy. But after his break-up with Casey, it was hard to find peace there anymore as everything in the bar reminded him of her. So that is when he found the area behind the Kappa Tau house. He never told anyone about it and only introduced it to Rebecca when getting alone time between the two of them had grown harder and harder. He knew that was where she was right now. He just wasn't quite sure why.

As he parked the Jeep in front of the Kappa Tau house his cell phone rang again. This time it was Beaver. He hesitated for a few seconds, trying to decide if he was going to answer it or not. He finally decided against it and hit the ignore button. As the screen cleared he hit the power button and turned the phone off. Obviously Rebecca had some things to talk about and he didn't want his cell phone constantly ringing during the conversation.

Cappie pushed his phone in his front pocket as he got out of the Jeep. He took a couple of deep breaths before making his way along the side of the Kappa Tau house and through the back fence. He was lucky it was summer and no one was at the house or he would surely have some explaining to do as to why he was there. He made his way through the backyard and out the backside of the fence. There wasn't really a path in the woods to follow and it was difficult to see with it being so dark out so he had to take his time, making sure not to step in any holes or trip over any branches. He saw the clearing ahead of him. It was much brighter than the woods as the moonlight wasn't blocked by the towering trees above him. He stepped into the clearing and saw Rebecca sitting on a blanket right in the middle. Her back was turned to him but he knew she knew he was there. He slowly made his way to her, unsure of exactly what to say once he got there.

"It's about time someone found me," said Rebecca as Cappie was only a few feet from her. "I can't believe I actually had to contact you to find me."

"Well you didn't exactly give us much information," said Cappie sitting next to her. "We thought you had been kidnapped or something."

"Oh please," said Rebecca rolling her eyes.

"It's true," Cappie replied. "The cops are patrolling the city now looking for you. You're dad even held a press conference asking anyone to come forward with information about your whereabouts."

"Ha, that's funny," said Rebecca with a small laugh.

"It's really not," said Cappie in a serious tone. "You've got a lot of people worried sick about you and giving up their time to look for you and make sure everything is OK."

"Can't a girl just be alone?" Rebecca asked.

"Sure, but you have to let people know you want to be alone," said Cappie. "You can't just not answer your phone and expect us all to know that you just want to be alone."

"Yeah right, if I would have answered my phone and asked to be left alone I would have gotten a big pity party," Rebecca replied. "People would keep asking me if I was OK or wonder if there was anything they could do to help. I don't need that right now."

"OK, so then what do you need right now?" Cappie asked.

"I just want a friend," Rebecca replied.

"You have plenty of friends Rebecca, why on earth did you ask me to come here?" Cappie asked.

"Because you've always been the one person in my life who has never judged me for who I am," she replied. "You've always told me the truth and I like that about you."

"I don't think Casey and Ashleigh judge you," Cappie stated.

"They don't," Rebecca replied. "But they do have this crazy notion that they always know what is right for me. I'm beginning to think what I thought was right maybe isn't so right anymore."

"Whoa, there were too many 'rights' in that sentence," said Cappie scrunching his eyebrows together. "It sounded like you don't think Ashleigh and Casey know what is best for you. And if that is the case I have to tell you that you are very wrong. Those two girls have been the greatest friends you have ever had. Even when you weren't Casey's favorite person she still stood up for you against nationals to keep you in the sorority."

"This isn't about Casey and Ashleigh," said Rebecca. "Those two girls are the two best friends I could ever have. There is no doubt about that."

"Then what is this all about Bex?" Cappie asked.

Rebecca took a deep breath.

"This is about my insecurities," she replied. "This is about me and Evan and wondering if what we are about to do in a week is really right."

"I still don't understand why I'm here if this is about you and Evan," said Cappie in a disappointing tone. "He's the one you should be talking to, not me."

"Cap, you're really not being very supportive right now," said Rebecca in a snotty tone.

"How am I supposed to be supportive when myself and several of your best friends have spent the entire day trying to figure out where you were?" Cappie asked. "We've been worried sick ever since your dad told us you didn't show up for lunch. And then you have Casey who is back at the hotel right now cancelling all of the plans for the bachelorette party tonight. All because you don't have to decency to pick up the phone and let someone know you just want to be alone."

Rebecca just looked away, unable to face Cappie at the moment. There were a few tense moments of silence between the two of them. Cappie finally took a deep breath.

"Look Rebecca, I'm sorry I just blew up at you," he said softly. "It's just been a really frustrating day with everything that has happened. I am all ears now if you want to tell me what is really on your mind. No judging, I promise."

Rebecca turned her head back around to look at Cappie. He could see the water built up in her eyes but no tears had fallen yet.

"I'm scared Cap," she said quietly. "I'm scared that I'm not good enough."

"Of course you're good enough," said Cappie. "Evan is a lucky guy to have you."

"I wasn't good enough for you," said Rebecca, staring Cappie right in the eyes.

"That's because you weren't Casey," Cappie replied. "And there is something different about what you have with Evan that is different then what we had."

"And what is that?" Rebecca asked.

"Love," Cappie replied. "You can't sit here and tell me that you don't love Evan. I know you do."

"I think I do," Rebecca replied. "But how does anyone know what love really is anyway?"

"Love is something that you make your own definition for," Cappie stated. "All that matters is how you feel inside around that person. No one can define love for you, you have to define it yourself."

Rebecca didn't say anything in response.

"Alright," said Cappie. "Why don't you tell me some of the things you like about Evan."

Rebecca gave him an odd look.

"I'm going somewhere with this, I promise," Cappie continued.

"Well," Rebecca began. "I like that Evan knows what I go through when it comes to having a high profile family. I like that he's never been unfaithful to me and has always been there when I needed him. I like that he's very attractive and very good in bed."

"OK, you can stop there," interrupted Cappie putting his hand up as a stop sign for Rebecca.

Rebecca had a small smile grow at the corners of her mouth.

"You see, we're getting somewhere here," said Cappie nudging Rebecca on the shoulder as he noticed her smile.

There was a brief silence between the two of them as Rebecca's smile slowly faded.

"Cap, why am I so scared?" Rebecca asked. "I'm usually such a strong woman. But thinking about this wedding coming up is just scaring the living daylights out of me."

Cappie paused for a second to think about Rebecca's question.

"Bex, I think deep down you're afraid to be happy," Cappie replied. "That's why drama seems to follow you wherever you go. It's like you stir things up because that's easier for you to deal with then actually being happy."

"I'm happy," Rebecca defended herself.

"That's just it," said Cappie. "You are happy. But you're sabotaging yourself by coming out here and running away from things."

"I guess I just never pictured things happening this way," said Rebecca. "Growing up I was always expected to be a proper and good girl to which I felt like I was living a lie. And then I went to college and did the complete opposite and became the bad girl, which is a lie also. I'm neither one of those girls and you and Evan and Casey and Ashleigh have really helped me define who I really am over the past couple of years. If I marry Evan, I might have to give who I have become up."

"That's not true at all," said Cappie. "Evan loves you for who you are right now."

"But his family doesn't," Rebecca replied. "They expect me to be the proper good girl I was growing up now that I'll have the Chambers name. I can't go back to that. I would rather be unhappy running away from things than unhappy being someone that I'm not."

"I don't think you have to be unhappy at all," said Cappie. "If what you are saying is true then the past two years of you and Evan's relationship has really been worth nothing."

"My relationship with Evan is worth everything," Rebecca replied.

"Then screw his family," said Cappie throwing his hands in the air. "Like I said before, Evan loves you for who you are now. We all love you for who you are now. You deserve to be happy Rebecca. You shouldn't be cheating yourself out of happiness like this."

Rebecca looked at Cappie as the tears finally broke from her eyes and began running down her cheeks.

"Do you think Evan will ever forgive me for doing this?" she asked as she became more and more choked up.

"Of course he is," said Cappie wrapping his arms around Rebecca. "Evan has been worried sick about you today. He's been doing everything he can to find you because he cares about you and he loves you. It's about time the two of you let yourselves live happily ever after and stop worrying about what his family or what your family thinks. The only thing that matters is that the two of you love each other. Hell, the two of you could even pack everything up and move to Chicago with the rest of us just to get away from your families if you want. You know no one is going to judge you there."

Rebecca lifted her head off of Cappie's shoulder and gave him a small smile.

"Moving out there sounds tempting," she said. "But I think I have to face things head on. Right here."

"I think that is the best thing you can do," Cappie replied. "Here I am encouraging you to run away from your problems when it comes to your family but face your problems when it comes to getting married. I never knew I could contradict myself so much."

They each let out a small laugh as Rebecca leaned her head back against Cappie's shoulder and he wrapped his arm around her again.

"You are a really great friend Cap," said Rebecca. "That's why I called you out here. I knew you would be the one person to tell me exactly what I needed to hear and make me laugh at the same time. That is a beautiful quality about you and I hope you never lose it."

"Why thank you," said Cappie kissing Rebecca's forehead. "And you're a pretty wonderful gal yourself. I think come Saturday you'll make Evan one hell of a wife to spend the rest of your lives with together."

"Pending that everyone doesn't hate me," said Rebecca with a small chuckle.

"Hey, at least we'll be hated together," Cappie replied.

Rebecca sat up and gave him a confused look.

"I kind of just walked out of the room to come see you without telling Casey what was going on," said Cappie reading her expression. "Her and Beaver both called me on my way here and I pulled one of your numbers and didn't answer the phone. So I think we're both going to have a little hell to pay once we get back into town."

"I can't believe you didn't tell anyone where you were going," said Rebecca. "That was pretty stupid."

"Well isn't this the pot calling the kettle black?" Cappie asked smirking at Rebecca.

Rebecca opened her mouth to defend herself but realized she was backed in a wall. Cappie was right, she was pretty stupid for the stunt that she pulled today.

"Have you seriously been here in the field since this afternoon?" Cappie asked breaking her from her thoughts.

"Pretty much," said Rebecca. "I had to pee at one point and snuck into the KT house. You guys should really lock your door during summer breaks."

Cappie laughed. "So you've just been out here the whole time thinking?"

"Yeah," Rebecca replied. "It really helped me clear my mind and de-stress from all the wedding drama."

"Well the girls had one heck of a night planned for you tonight to try and get your mind off of the wedding and things," said Cappie.

"Oh that's right, the bachelorette party," said Rebecca looking at her watch. "Guess it's too late now."

"Yeah," Cappie replied. "Casey already canceled everything anyway."

"Her and Ashleigh are probably going to be pretty mad at me," said Rebecca. "I guess I probably could have picked a better night to run away like this huh?"

"Yeah, probably," Cappie replied.

The two of them sat in silence for a few moments.

"Well, we should probably get back and face the music," said Cappie. "I'm afraid to even turn on my phone and hear all the hateful messages everyone has probably left for me."

"Ha, probably nowhere near the ones I got," said Rebecca holding her phone up to Cappie's face.

"Eighty voicemails?" Cappie asked reading the screen.

"Oh yeah," Rebecca replied standing up. "Everyone from my friends to Evan to my parents to the police and probably some people from the press."

"You know we could always make up a story and say you were held hostage by a couple of bears or something?" said Cappie with a smile as he stood up.

"No, I think I'll go with the truth this time around," said Rebecca. "It sounds much better than pretending something happened that really didn't."

"That's my girl," said Cappie wrapping his arms around Rebecca for a hug.

"Thanks again Cap," she said into his chest. "I don't know what I would do without you."

"That's why I'm here," he said backing away from her. "Don't ever hesitate to come to me if you need to talk."

"I know," Rebecca replied as she picked the blanket up off of the ground.

The two of them walked silently back through the woods, through the KT backyard and back to their cars parked outside of the KT house.

"I'll follow you back to the hotel," said Rebecca as she walked over to her car. "We can walk in together. Maybe it will lessen the blow a little bit."

"Probably not, but sure, I'll wait for you," said Cappie with a small laugh as he opened the door to the Jeep.

He reached into his pocket and took his phone out before sitting down. He powered up his phone as he started the Jeep and waited for all the new messages to appear. And sure enough, a minute later they come up: 10 voicemails and 18 text messages. There were a few from Beaver, a couple from Ashleigh but most of them from Casey. He couldn't even bring himself to begin listening to them. He already knew what they said and the thought made his heart sink down into his stomach. He knew running off after Rebecca without telling Casey was probably the worst thing he could do. He just didn't want to deal with having to explain everything to her before he left. His main priority at the time was making sure that Rebecca was OK and getting her home safely. He closed his phone and threw it on the seat next to him as he pulled out onto the street and began driving back towards the hotel. He sighed as he thought about how this night was far from over.

* * *

**_A/N: Yay for my internet still working today :0) I know a lot of you were anxious to find out what was going to happen between Cap and Bex so let me know what you think. Next chapter will be up tomorrow as usual. Hope everyone is having a great day!_**


	105. I'm Sorry

I'M SORRY

Rebecca followed Cappie into the hotel parking lot and parked the car. She thought the entire way to the hotel how to explain what was going on in her head at the moment. She knew everyone was going to be upset with her. Casey and Ashleigh would be upset because they had to cancel all of the bachelorette party plans. And of course Evan would be upset because he's probably been worrying about her all day. As much as she thought about everything there really wasn't going to be an easy way to explain everything.

Rebecca slowly got out of her car and met up with Cappie who was waiting for her.

"Ready to do this?" he asked.

"No," she replied. "But I know I have to."

Cappie put his arm around Rebecca and the two of them walked into the hotel. As they made their way to the elevator Cappie happened to glance in the bar area and saw Evan and Calvin at the bar.

"Evan's in there," he said stopping and pointing to the bar.

"Come with me," said Rebecca. "Please. "

"OK," said Cappie removing his arm from Rebecca and heading into the bar.

"Hey Cap—" Evan stopped mid sentence when he saw Rebecca standing behind Cappie. He immediately stood up and wrapped his arms tightly around Rebecca.

"Where was she?" Calvin asked Cappie as he sat in one of the empty bar stools.

"On campus," Cappie replied.

"Oh god I was so worried about you," said Evan squeezing Rebecca tighter.

"I know," Rebecca replied, tears now running down her face.

"Where were you?" Evan asked backing away from her.

"Can we go someplace private and talk?" Rebecca asked.

"Uh," mumbled Evan looking around and thinking about where they could go.

"Here," said Calvin handing Evan his room key. "You can use my room. I'll wait down here while you guys talk."

"Thanks Calv," said Evan taking the key from him. "I owe you one."

Evan and Rebecca silently made their way up to Calvin's room. Once the door shut, Evan began to lose it.

"Do you have any idea what kind of mess you put us in?" he asked as he began to pace in the room. "Do you even understand how worried and upset I was when I couldn't contact you? What were you thinking? Where were you at?"

Rebecca just sat down on the bed and watched Evan pace back and forth while he threw question after question at her. He finally stopped and looked at her, waiting for her to answer.

"I'm sorry Ev," was all she could respond.

"That's it?" Evan asked. "All this crap you put me though and all you can say is you're sorry?"

"Well what am I supposed to say?" Rebecca asked raising her voice slightly.

"How about answering my questions," Evan replied. "I need answers Rebecca."

Rebecca continued to be silent.

"And another one," said Evan with a dumbfounded look. "Why in the hell did you show up with Cappie? Were you two off together having one more night of crazy sex before we get married?"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," said Rebecca standing up off of the bed. "First of all, that was two questions, not one. Second of all, there is absolutely NOTHING going on between Cappie and I. He's married to my best friend for god's sake. I wouldn't even think of such a thing."

"So then why was he with you?" Evan asked sternly, staring directly into Rebecca's eyes.

"I texted him to come and see me," Rebecca replied taking her stare off of Evan and looking at the ground. "He came, we talked, everything is fine now."

"No, everything is not fine now," Evan snapped. "I'm still here wondering why you pulled this stunt in the first place. You have the police out there looking for you and you're practically the top story of the nightly news because of your father. So, yeah, there are some major issues at hand here."

"I got scared," Rebecca replied sitting back down on the bed.

"Scared of what?" Evan asked, his voice a little more sympathetic.

"Everything," Rebecca replied. "I'm scared I'm not going to be a good enough wife. I'm scared I'm not going to live up to your family's name. I'm scared that I'm going to become someone who I'm not."

"I wouldn't have asked you to marry me if I didn't think you were going to be a good wife," said Evan sitting down next to Rebecca.

"I know," Rebecca replied. "It's just that everything seems to be working out perfect. And my life isn't perfect. It never has been."

"What wrong with having a perfect life?" Evan asked. "I've done everything I can to make sure it is that way."

"And you're amazing for doing that," said Rebecca. "I guess I've just never been so happy and had so many things fall into place. This is all new to me and it's scary."

"So you ran off to cause drama because things were going too well for you?" Evan asked.

"Well not exactly like that," Rebecca replied. "I sound like an evil bitch who just causes drama on purpose when you put it like that."

"I seem to remember you were like that when you first started college," Evan stated.

"Yes, but that's not who I really am," she replied. "Like I was telling Cappie, that was the rebellious, get away from the good girl side of me. That person is long gone."

"I know," he replied as he put his arm loosely around Rebecca.

"I think I had to get away today because I'm afraid to be happy," Rebecca stated. "Since my life has always been about drama it's just easier for me to be the person in the middle of it. It's what I'm familiar with. I'm not familiar with all this being happy stuff."

"So you're saying you haven't been happy the past three years we've been dating?" Evan asked.

"Of course I have," said Rebecca turning to Evan. "It's just that we finally have reached this point where everything is final. It's like from that day forward, happiness can be there for the rest of my life."

"You're kind of scaring me," said Evan. "Are you saying you don't want to get married Rebecca?"

"No, I'm not saying that at all," she said taking his hand into hers. "I want to marry you Evan. I want us to live happily ever after. I realized today that this is the right thing to do. There is going to be no regrets on my part."

"Sounds like you had some regrets earlier today," he stated.

"What girl doesn't have regrets before their wedding day?" Rebecca asked. "Granted, I probably took my regrets a little bit to the extreme. But I'm still allowed to have them."

"So they're gone?" Evan asked turning to look at Rebecca.

"Yes, they're gone," Rebecca replied. "I'm more than ready to become Mrs. Evan Chambers next weekend."

Evan leaned in and gave Rebecca a soft kiss on the lips.

"No more leaving me OK?" he asked. "Or if you do, how about giving me a call so I don't have to worry so much about you?"

"Yeah, I really screwed up by not calling anyone," said Rebecca. "But I just wanted to be alone. I figured people would get the hint when I didn't answer the phone."

"You forget that you have a lot of people who care about you," said Evan. "You're the type of person who always answers her phone and if you go a few hours without answering it, we have to assume that something is wrong."

"They actually ran a news story about me disappearing?" Rebecca asked.

"Yes," Evan replied. "So we probably should call your dad and let him know that you are OK."

"I'll call him right now," said Rebecca holding her hand out to Evan.

"What?" Evan asked.

"Give me your phone, I left mine in the car," she replied.

"Uh, my phone doesn't really work anymore," said Evan sheepishly.

He went over to the desk and picked up the pieces to show Rebecca.

"You busted your phone?" she asked.

"I was upset!" Evan defended himself.

Rebecca just laughed as she stood up and put her arms around Evan.

"I love you, you do know that right?" she asked.

"Yes, I do," Evan replied. "And I love you too."

The two of them softly kissed again.

"But I just have to ask again," said Evan pulling away. "Why on earth did you call Cappie of all people?"

"You really wanna know the truth?" Rebecca asked.

Evan nodded his head.

"Cap and I had a secret place when we were dating," said replied letting go of him and sitting down on the bed. "It was the only place I knew I could go to and be completely alone. So that's why I called him to come and find me. He's the only other person who knows about the place. Plus, he's a great listener and he's never been afraid to put me in my place. I never meant to cause any problems by reaching out to him first. When I thought about a friend who would be completely honest with me, he was the first one that came to mind."

"Casey and Ashleigh are honest with you," Evan argued.

"Yes, but there is just something about Cappie that was more comforting to talk to," she replied.

"You sure there's no feelings there?" Evan asked jokingly, even though he really wanted to know the answer to that question.

"There are no feelings there," said Rebecca standing back up and putting her arms around Evan's waist. "The two of us are just friends. And you are the one that I love, not him. Cappie and I had our chance and it didn't work out. You're the one I'm supposed to be with."

"Good answer," Evan replied with a smile as he bent down and kissed Rebecca.

The two of them backed away and stared into each other's eyes briefly and smiled, knowing what the other was thinking.

"We really should get downstairs and use Calvin's phone to call your dad," said Evan.

"Yeah but sex on Calvin's bed sounds so much more interesting," Rebecca replied with a wink.

"No, I can't do that to him," Evan replied. "We can head back to the apartment and have all the sex you want tonight."

"Aw, but it would be more fun in here," said Rebecca as she began to run her hands underneath Evan's shirt.

"No, no, no, no, no," said Evan with a nervous laugh as he pulled away from Rebecca. "I'm serious, we need to go downstairs."

Rebecca grunted playfully as she backed away and started towards the door. Evan fixed his shirt and followed out the door quickly behind her.

* * *

After Evan and Rebecca left to go Calvin's room Cappie hung around the bar for a little bit with Calvin.

"Aren't you going to go and let Casey and the others know that Rebecca is OK?" Calvin asked him.

"Yeah, I probably should," said Cappie. "But I'm not in a hurry to do so."

"Uh, why is that?" Calvin asked in a confused tone.

"Because I kind of ran out on Casey to go and get Rebecca," said Cappie. "She's been calling my cell phone all night and I haven't picked up."

"Oh, so you and Rebecca are one in the same at the moment," said Calvin understanding where Cappie was coming from now.

"I guess you could say that," Cappie replied.

"Well I hate to say it but you did dig your own grave," said Calvin. "And you probably should face the music sooner than later."

"I know," said Cappie taking a deep breath. "I'll catch you around Calvin."

"Good luck man," said Calvin patting Cappie on the back as he walked by him to go up to the hotel room.

Cappie procrastinated as much as he could going up to the room but it wasn't nearly long enough as he reached the room and slid the key into the door. He noticed the only light on in the room was one beside the bed when he walked in. The room was quiet, which was much different then how it had been previously in the day. He stepped into the room and saw that Casey was alone and lying on the bed.

"I found Rebecca," he said softly.

"Where was she?" Casey asked, not bothering to turn around and look at Cappie.

"At our secret place," Cappie replied.

"The Lite and Easy?" Casey asked.

"No, Rebecca and I's secret place," stated Cappie.

"Oh, I didn't even know you had a secret place with Rebecca," said Casey coldly. "Glad to hear she's OK though."

"Are you OK?" Cappie asked finally growing enough nerve to sit on the edge of the bed next to Casey.

"You're food is on the desk over there. It's probably cold by now since you just ran out of here an all," said Casey blatantly ignoring Cappie's question.

"Case, about that—" Cappie started.

"I really don't want to hear it Cap," interrupted Casey turning over so her back was to Cappie.

"Alright, I get it, you're upset with me," said Cappie. "I deserve it. But you need to talk to me so we can work through this and get past it."

"I feel betrayed Cap," said Casey. "I can't believe you just walked out of here without saying a word. Especially when you knew how worried I was about Rebecca. All you had to do was tell me you had heard from her and you were going to get her."

Cappie was silent. He had no idea how to respond to her.

"But instead," Casey continued. "You let me sit here all night worried sick about you. You even didn't answer the phone. You should know better than to not answer the phone after everything we've been through with Rebecca today."

"I know," was all Cappie could respond as he looked down at the ground. "I'm an idiot and I never should have done that. But when Rebecca texted me all I could think about is going and making sure she was OK."

"But it never once occurred to you to make sure that your wife was OK?" asked Casey finally turning around and looking at Cappie, tears running down her cheeks. "That was just so unlike you."

"Please don't cry," whined Cappie.

"What am I supposed to do Cap?" Casey asked. "I'm hurt, I'm frustrated and the only outlet I can have is crying right now. I hate it. I don't want to cry."

"Then don't," said Cappie reaching down and brushing a strand of hair out of her face.

"Well it's kind of hard when I have YOUR baby inside of me controlling all the hormones and emotions in my body at the moment," Casey snapped as she backed away from Cappie's hand.

Cappie was shocked at her reaction.

"Since when is it MY baby?" he asked standing up and beginning to pace. "I always thought it was OUR baby."

Casey sat up in the bed and opened her mouth to argue back. But she quickly shut her mouth and sighed.

"How did this become an argument about the baby?" she asked in a defeated voice.

"I don't know," said Cappie with a sigh as he sat down next to her.

The two of them sat in silence, each avoiding eye contact with the other.

"I'm really sorry Case," Cappie finally stated. "I was wrong for running out of here without telling you what I was doing. And I was even more wrong for not answering the phone when you called me all worried."

Casey turned to him and quickly leaned in and planted a firm kiss on his lips. Cappie looked completely shocked when she pulled away.

"Don't you ever do that to me again," she said.

"I won't," said Cappie with a smile.

"I'm serious Cap," said Casey softly. "I never want to worry about where you are or what you're doing."

"I know," Cappie replied taking his hand and brushing it along Casey's cheek.

This time Casey didn't back away, she leaned her head into his palm as she stared up into his eyes. She then leaned towards him and gave him a much softer kiss on the lips. Cappie increased the firmness of his hand on her face as he pulled her closer for a deeper kiss.

"Thank you for being so understanding," he said softly as he backed away from her.

"You're welcome," she replied giving him a small smile.

Cappie smiled back and the two of them sat briefly in silence.

"Alright, my curiosity has got me. Where on earth is this secret place you have with Rebecca?" Casey finally asked playfully.

"That's why it's a secret place," said Cappie. "It's only for me and Rebecca to know."

"And what kinds of things did you guys do in this place in the past?" Casey asked.

Cappie just gave her a knowing look.

"Oh, never mind," said Casey realizing what Cappie's answer was going to be. "Not something I want to know about."

"Yeah, probably not," Cappie replied with a small laugh.

"So are Rebecca and Evan still getting married?" Casey asked.

"I'm pretty sure they are," Cappie replied. "As long as Evan doesn't kill her for leaving and causing him to worry all day."

"I think he loves her just a little too much to let that happen," said Casey with a smile.

Cappie grabbed her hand and looked into her eyes.

"I love you Case," he said. "And I'm really sorry again. I deserve the worst husband of the year award today."

"You may deserve it today," said Casey with a small laugh. "But overall you're the greatest husband of the year. And on top of that, the greatest father too."

"A father to OUR baby right?" Cappie asked.

"Yes, OUR baby," Casey replied with a small laugh.

Cappie wrapped his arms around Casey's waist and kissed her softly. He still didn't know what he did in this world to deserve such a wonderful woman in his life than Casey. No matter how much he screwed up she was always there to forgive him and have the most unconditional love for him. He was so lucky to have her and a growing family along with it. He squeezed her tighter as the two of them laid back onto the bed. All thoughts of Rebecca and the incident of the day were the furthest from their minds. They would deal with those things in the morning. Right now it was just the two of them and time to focus on their relationship and life together……..forever.

* * *

**_A/N: So of course I couldn't keep Cappie and Casey mad at each other :0) Hope everyone liked how this chapter turned out. I didn't like it all that much when I wrote it....haha....but when I re-read it I realized I liked it more than I thought I did. Next chapter is some more things leading up to the wedding. Thanks for reading!_**


	106. The Words You Say

THE WORDS YOU SAY

The next morning Rebecca woke up to her phone vibrating next to her. She slowly stretched and reached over for it. It was a text from Ashleigh.

"_Are we still on for the fitting at eleven?"_ she asked.

Rebecca replied yes as she looked at the clock and realized it was nearing ten. She hadn't spoken to Ashleigh or Casey since returning to the hotel with Cappie. She and Evan met up with Calvin at the bar and she used Calvin's phone to call her mom and dad and let them know she was OK. Her dad then made her release a statement to the media apologizing for her actions and thanking everyone for their help to make sure she was alright. She then went with Evan back to their apartment and the two of them made love all night long. There was something special about it and she had never felt more connected with him that night. Thinking of Evan made her realize she was in the bed alone. She searched the room for Evan but didn't find him so she decided to get up. She scrambled to put her clothes on as she headed out into the living room to find Evan sitting on the couch.

"Hey," she said softly as she sat next to him.

"Morning," Evan replied putting his arm around her and allowing her to snuggle against his chest.

"Last night was pretty amazing," said Rebecca with a small smile.

"Yeah, no wonder why I'm so tired this morning," said Evan.

"So why did you get up? I expected to find you in bed next to me this morning," asked Rebecca.

"As tired as I am I couldn't sleep," Evan replied. "I kept thinking about yesterday and everything that happened."

"I thought we were going to put that behind us," pouted Rebecca as she lifted her head up to look at Evan.

"I know," Evan replied looking at her. "I just need a little bit of time to get over it, that's all."

"Are you having doubts now?" Rebecca asked.

"No," Evan defended himself. "I'm just worried about the fallout from everything."

"What kind of fallout?" Rebecca asked. "I already apologized to the media and everyone."

"Not everyone," Evan replied. "You still have to talk to Casey and Ashleigh. And probably my parents."

"Your parents?" Rebecca asked sitting up away from Evan. "What has this got to do with your parents?"

"They're pretty upset with your actions," said Evan. "And they think our name has been tarnished."

"And you believe them?" Rebecca asked in a snotty tone.

"No," Evan replied. "I hate my parents and I wish this would all go away. But the reality is that I still want them at the wedding for their support. And I think an apology from you will ensure their attendance to the wedding."

"So they've threatened you with not coming to the wedding if I don't apologize?" Rebecca asked.

"Not in so many words," Evan replied. "But I'm sure it's coming and I think it would be better if we just take care of that first before they even get the chance."

"Fine," said Rebecca. "I'll call your mom later. But right now I have to get ready for dress fittings with the girls."

Rebecca gave Evan a soft kiss on the cheek and went into the bedroom to get ready. About a half an hour later she was off to the dress shop, dreading her arrival. She knew she needed to say something to Ashleigh and Casey about everything and hoped that the two of them weren't too mad at her.

She was a few minutes late so all of the bridesmaids were already in the bridal store beginning to try their dresses on.

"There's our beautiful bride," said one of the store associates as Rebecca walked in.

"Hello," said Rebecca as she gave her a hug.

"Everyone is trying their dresses on," she said. "Do you want to see them first or go and get in your gown?"

"I think I want to see them first," Rebecca replied.

Rebecca followed the store associate back to the main dressing rooms. She could hear all of her friends rumbling around in each of the rooms getting their dresses on. Jordan was the first one out.

"Rebecca!" she exclaimed running over to her and giving her a hug. "I'm so glad you're alright."

"Yeah, I'm fine," Rebecca replied. "Just got a little cold feet but everything is OK now."

"Good, I'm glad," said Jordan.

"You certainly look amazing in that dress," said Rebecca as Jordan spun around for her.

All of the girls had satin tea length dresses in a flamingo pink color. They were strapless with a straight across neckline and had a sash around the waist that tied into a bow in the front of the dress and off to the side just a bit.

"These dresses are so cute Rebecca," said Abby as she came out of the dressing room. "You did a great job picking them out."

"Thanks," Rebecca replied with a smile.

One by one the rest of the bridesmaids came out to show Rebecca their dresses. Being such a huge wedding, Rebecca and Evan had a huge wedding party to go along with it. She had eight bridesmaids comprised of her sorority sisters and high school friends and Evan had the same amount of groomsmean between his brother, his fraternity brothers and other college friends. Ashleigh and Casey were the last ones to step out. There was quite a bit of awkward tension between them all at first. Rebecca slowly stood up and made her way over to the both of them.

"You two look beautiful," she said as she approached them.

"Thanks," Ashleigh replied softly.

Rebecca took a deep breath.

"I'm really sorry guys," she said. "I know you're both probably really mad at me and I deserve it. I just hope we can get passed this and have a great wedding week."

"I lost a lot of money having to cancel everything for the bachelorette party last night," said Casey avoiding eye contact with Rebecca.

"I'll pay you back, I promise," said Rebecca.

"I'm not sure if we're going to be able to do a party now," said Ashleigh.

"It's OK, I don't mind," Rebecca replied. "All I really want is my two best friends back. I know I screwed up really badly but I got super scared and the only thing I knew to do was run."

"You could have talked to us Bex," said Casey, still avoiding eye contact. "Ashleigh and I are both married. We've been through it. I guess I'm more hurt that you didn't reach out to us. I thought we were best friends."

"We are best friends," Rebecca replied. "I would be completely lost without you guys in my life. Just because I didn't turn to you yesterday doesn't mean that you don't mean anything to me."

"So you turned to Cappie instead, causing the two of us to get into a fight," said Casey finally looking at Rebecca.

"I didn't mean to cause any problems between you two," said Rebecca.

"Well you did," Casey said noticeably choked up. "I'm sorry, I just can't handle this right now."

Casey went back into the dressing room and closed the door.

"Wow, I knew you guys would be hurt but I didn't expect her to be crying," said Rebecca. "I feel even more horrible now."

"Casey did a lot of planning from Chicago to make your party last night as amazing as she could," said Ashleigh. "She had limos and dancers and VIP lounges all set up for you."

"I knew I didn't pick the right night to run away," said Rebecca. "And then to drag Cappie into everything probably wasn't the greatest. Please tell me that the two of them are OK. I couldn't live with myself knowing I've caused some major problems between the two of them. I've done that enough in my lifetime."

"Cappie said that they were fine at breakfast this morning," said Ashleigh. "She was pretty mad at him at first but he said she was able to calm down once he explained what was going on and apologized."

"I wish she could forgive me as easily," said Rebecca with a sigh.

"She will forgive you. Just give her some time," said Ashleigh.

"Are we OK Ash?" Rebecca asked looking up at her.

"Yeah," said Ashleigh nodding her head. "I still don't quite understand why you did what you did but I'm just glad that things got worked out and the wedding is still on. You truly deserve all the happiness in the world with Evan and you have my support one hundred perfect."

"Aw, thanks Ash," said Rebecca giving her a hug.

"Miss Logan, your dress is ready to try on now," said the store associate interrupting the two of them.

"OK," said Rebecca backing away. "I'll be back in a bit Ash."

"Have fun," said Ashleigh as Rebecca followed the associate into a larger dressing room for her to try on her dress.

"Oh my gosh it's more beautiful than I remembered," said Rebecca as she saw the dress hanging up in the dressing room.

The dress was all the glitz and glamour that fit Rebecca's personality and lifestyle perfectly. The top of the dress was a tightly fitted corset made completely of lace. The top was actually made to be see-through but Rebecca opted to add a layer of fabric underneath so she didn't turn too many heads while walking down the aisle. The dress itself was a ball gown so the bottom of the dress was very poofy and made completely to tool and lace. The corset was also lined with hundreds of Swarovski crystals to give her the bling effect that she wanted. The dress itself was well over ten thousand dollars and she had to make sure it looked just as expensive as it actually was. It took her about fifteen minutes to actually get into the dress but once it was on and she looked in the mirror the tears began to swell up in her eyes. She couldn't believe that in less than a week she would be wearing this dress walking down the aisle about to marry the man of her dreams.

The associate helped Rebecca out of the dressing room as she wiped the tears from her face. Once out in the main lobby her bridesmaids all gasped at the sight of her.

"Oh my god Rebecca! That is the most amazing dress I have ever seen!" exclaimed Abby.

"And you know just how to wear it," said Jordan.

Rebecca smiled as she stepped up to the large mirrors in the lobby.

"Let's get all of the bridesmaids in their dresses around you Rebecca so we can see how the whole look comes together," said the store associate.

Everyone began to gather around Rebecca and face the mirror.

"Wait, we're missing one," said the associate as she counted all the bridesmaids.

Rebecca's smile quickly fell off her face knowing that the missing bridesmaid was Casey.

"Excuse me," said Rebecca as she picked up her dress, stepped away and went over to Casey's dressing room.

Rebecca didn't even knock. She opened the door and made her way in, her dress practically filling the entire dressing room. Casey was sitting on a stool in the corner staring at the ground.

"Can you please talk to me," said Rebecca wishing she could sit down too but knew there was no way she would be able to in the very small room with the large dress she had on.

"I'm not really sure what to say," Casey replied.

"Casey I need you," said Rebecca. "I need you now more than ever. I don't know how many times I can tell you how sorry I am. What I did was a mistake."

"Why didn't you call Bex?" Casey asked. "I really thought we were better friends than that."

"We are great friends," Rebecca replied. "You and Ashleigh are my two best friends. I would do anything for the two of you and you know that. Yesterday I just wanted to be alone. That's all. I'm sorry you're hurt I didn't contact you."

"And what about Cappie?" Casey asked. "Why did you contact my husband and not me?"

Rebecca took a deep breath.

"Casey will you look at me please?" Rebecca asked putting her hands on her waist like a mother scolding a child. "I would move your face to look at me yourself but I've got this huge dress from preventing me from getting to you."

Casey let out small smile at Rebecca's forcefulness towards her and finally turned to look at her.

"I called Cappie because he was the only person who would know where I was at. And I wasn't ready to come home yet. And Cappie is an amazing listener who has never been afraid to tell me how he really feels. I needed someone like him to bring me back down to reality and make me realize my thoughts were way off base."

"I could have been that person," said Casey.

"Could you?" Rebecca asked looking directly at Casey. "Could you have told me off, yelled at me, comforted me and made me laugh all at the same time?"

"Probably not," said Casey taking a deep breath.

"You see, now that is why I called Cappie," Rebecca replied. "I needed him to be that person. It was nothing against you or Ashleigh. In that moment your husband was the right guy to call. I'm sure there will be plenty of moments in our lives where you or Ashleigh will be the right person to call. It's not like Cappie will be the first person I call to tell I'm pregnant or something. That person would be you."

Casey gave Rebecca a large smile as she stood up off of the chair.

"I guess everything makes sense when you put it like that Bex," said Casey. "I'm sorry I got so mad at you."

"And I'm sorry for everything else," said Rebecca smiling back at her. "Friends again?"

"Of course," said Casey as she attempted to step towards Rebecca to give her a hug without stepping on her dress.

"Hold that thought," said Rebecca as she opened the door and stepped out of the dressing room. She then turned around and opened her arms out towards Casey.

"I love you Bex," said Casey as she was finally able to give her a hug.

"I love you too Case," Rebecca replied squeezing her tightly.

"And I'm going to hold that against you," said Casey backing away with a smile. "I better be the first person you call when you find out your pregnant."

"Yes 'mam," Rebecca replied with a laugh.

"By the way Bex," said Casey looking at her. "You look stunningly amazing in that dress."

"Thanks Case," said Rebecca. "And I know I'll look even better having my super hot bridesmaids all standing around me."

The two girls hooked arms and made their way back out to the lobby to join everyone else in viewing the complete look of the bride and bridesmaids.

"It's perfect," said Rebecca.

Everyone nodded their heads in agreement.

After staring in the mirror for several more minutes everyone dispersed to their dressing rooms to get back into their regular clothes. All the bridesmaids left but Casey and Ashleigh who stuck around to wait for Rebecca to finish getting her dress off. As soon as Rebecca saw them waiting for her in the lobby she ran up to them and wrapped her arms around each of them.

"I love you two more than you'll ever know," she replied. "Thank you so much for being here for me."

"We wouldn't miss it for the world," said Ashleigh backing away.

"So I was thinking," said Casey as the girls began to walk towards their cars. "Since we can't really pull together a bachelorette party, why don't we all go out for a nice dinner tonight?"

"Like all the girls?" Rebecca asked.

"I was thinking more like all our close friends who are in town," Casey replied. "You and Evan, me and Cappie, Ash and Beave, and Calvin and Heath. I'm sure I can find us a nice restaurant to get a reservation at and then we can all be together and have a good time."

"That really sounds amazing," said Rebecca. "I would love that."

"Well good," Casey replied. "Ashleigh and I will head back to the hotel and find us a good place to go and we'll let you know later the details."

"You could come back with us to the hotel if you like," said Ashleigh noticing Casey was kind of leaving Rebecca to hang out on her own.

"No, I'll let you two take care of things," said Rebecca. "I, unfortunately, have to go and have lunch with Evan and his parents to discuss my actions of yesterday."

"Ew, good luck with that," said Casey clearly remembering how hard Evan's parents were to get along with.

"Yeah, thanks," Rebecca replied with a smile. "Call me with the details and I'll see you guys later tonight."

"Sounds great," Casey replied as her and Ashleigh walked towards the Jeep and made their way back to the hotel to begin planning the big dinner for everyone.

* * *

**_A/N: The next chapter is Rebecca and Evan's meeting with his parents and the dinner between all the friends.....and I promise you won't be disappointed with the end of the next chapter :0) Pretty exciting stuff happening!_**


	107. Ups and Downs

UPS AND DOWNS

"Hey sweetheart, how did the fitting go?" Evan asked as he met Rebecca getting out of her car at the restaurant.

"Rough at first," Rebecca replied. "Ashleigh was easy to get forgiveness from. But you know Casey, she had more difficulty and hid in the dressing room for a while before I had to go in there and get her to love me again."

"So she does love you again?" Evan asked jokingly.

"Yes, she loves me again," Rebecca replied with a smile. "Everything is great with us. She and Ash are even planning a dinner for all of us tonight in place of the bachelorette party."

"What are the guys supposed to do then?" Evan asked.

"You're going to be there with us," Rebecca replied. "It's not going to be like a bachelorette party. Just all of us friends getting together and having a nice dinner."

"Sounds great," said Evan. "But I think right now we really need to focus on getting through with lunch."

"Ugh," grunted Rebecca as the two of them began to walk towards the front of the restaurant. "Are they already inside?"

"Yup, waiting for us," said Evan as he took Rebecca's hand into his and squeezed it. "Please don't stress about this. Just apologize and I think everything will be OK."

"I hope so," said Rebecca as Evan opened the door for her.

They walked in to find Evan's parents sitting at a table towards the back of the restaurant.

"Hello," said Mrs. Chambers as Evan and Rebecca approached the table.

They waited for Evan's parents to stand up and give them hugs but they remained seated, barely making eye contact with them. Evan pulled Rebecca's chair out for her and she sat down. He took the seat next to her as the waiter came over and handed them menus. No one said anything for several minutes until the waiter came back over to the table and took their orders. Once the menus were turned in, the four of them no longer had anything to stare at and were forced to start with small talk.

"I heard it's supposed to rain later today," said Mr. Chambers. "We haven't had rain in a few weeks so it should be good for the grass."

"Yes, I think rain is a wonderful thing," said Evan feeling completely awkward around his parents. The tension was killing him.

"How's work going Evan?" his mom asked.

"Very good," Evan replied. "It'll be nice having the next couple weeks off though."

"You know I still hope one day you'll come work for the family company," said Mr. Chambers. "There is always a spot open for you with plenty of income to make you set for life."

"Thanks dad," said Evan. "But you know I want to be my own person. I've made a good name for myself in the business world with this new job and I hope things just continue to grow."

"Well you have to admit that having the last name Chambers certainly helped you along the way," said Mr. Chambers.

"Actually dad I don't think it did," argued Evan. "But you can keep thinking that if you want."

"Watch your tone young man," said Mrs. Chambers. "You're father has done an excellent job making the Chambers name one of the most prestigious in the country. There is no reason for you to be ashamed of the name."

"I'm not ashamed of it," Evan replied. "I just don't want my life based around it. I want to be Evan Chambers, not the son of Jonathan Chambers."

"Look son, we didn't invite you guys here to argue about the Chambers name," said Mr. Chambers.

"So then why did you invite us here?" Evan asked.

Both of his parents looked at Rebecca who hadn't said a word the entire time.

"Alright," she said with a deep breath. "I guess I should apologize for running off yesterday. I was having a moment of weakness and got scared. But everything is fine now and I'm even more excited to marry your son next weekend."

"We're happy to hear you are OK Rebecca," said Mrs. Chambers. "We're just worried that after what happened yesterday that you're not quite ready to get married to our son."

"What in the hell is that supposed to mean?" Evan snapped.

"It's just that being a Chambers comes with a lot of pressure and responsibilities," Mrs. Chambers replied. "I'm not sure Rebecca is prepared to handle it."

"Have you forgotten that she is the daughter of Senator Logan?" Evan asked. "She's been in the public eye most of her life."

"Yes, but that is really just in the state of Ohio. Hardly the amount of prestige that comes with the Chambers name on the international level," Mrs. Chambers replied.

"I can't believe you're doubting me," Rebecca said fighting back the tears as best as she could. "Having one little lapse in judgment doesn't define who I am."

"Well your little lapse in judgment caused us to have to put out a press release explaining the situation and clearing up any confusion people had," said Mr. Chambers. "It was certainly a hassle we didn't have to deal with."

"Rebecca and I love each other," said Evan. "Nothing is going to stop us from getting married."

"That's true," Mrs. Chambers replied. "And our intentions here are not to prevent the two of you from getting married. We just think it may be more beneficial to do it out of the spotlight."

"Huh?" Rebecca asked confused.

"Maybe you guys should just elope," said Mr. Chambers. "That way we can keep things low key and then less people will know about the marriage."

"Ha, this is comical," said Evan with an evil laugh. "I can't believe you guys are even suggesting such a thing. After all the planning and thousands and thousands of dollars spent on this wedding. Wouldn't your name be tarnished more knowing that your son cancelled his wedding and ran off to get married instead?"

"We're not going to say that you ran off and got married," said Mr. Chambers. "We're going to just announce the cancellation of the wedding because Miss Logan got cold feet. And that would explain everything that happened yesterday and clear everything up."

"Excuse me," said Rebecca as politely as she could as she threw her napkin down on the table and walked away.

"You guys are really hurting Rebecca," said Evan. "I can't believe some of the things you are saying! The wedding this weekend has been everything Rebecca has ever dreamed of. I'm not going to let you two ruin it."

"Evan, think about the family," said Mr. Chambers. "Marrying her in the public eye will just cause things to get even worse. What she did yesterday was unacceptable. She should have known better."

"I'm sorry mom and dad but Rebecca and I are getting married this weekend whether you like it or not," said Evan standing up. "And if you two want to be there then fine, we'd love to have you there to make sure you can get your photo ops for the press since obviously you don't have any faith in this marriage anymore."

"Evan—" his mom began.

"No," Evan interrupted. "I don't want to hear it anymore. If you can't accept a little mistake the woman that I love made then I don't know how to make you think otherwise. You guys have always liked Rebecca. She's a wonderful girl and I just can't understand what changed. We all make mistakes in life. I can't believe you're holding such a grudge against Rebecca for her mistake yesterday. She's apologized to her friends and family, you two and even the press. She can't do much else."

Mr. and Mrs. Chambers just stared at Evan with dumbfounded looks on their faces. Sure Evan had stood up to them before when it came to letting his trust fund go, but this time he was much more angry and they weren't sure how to react.

"I'll see you around," said Evan coldly.

With that Evan left his parents and went to go find Rebecca. After a minute of searching inside the restaurant he found her sitting outside on the curb. Her head was buried in her arms. Evan sat next to her and put his arm around her. Rebecca looked up at him, tears steadily streaming down her face.

"Y-your-parents-h-hate me," said Rebecca through her tears.

"Come on," said Evan helping Rebecca stand up. "Let's get out of here."

Rebecca drove herself into Evan's arms as soon as they were standing, sobbing uncontrollably. All Evan could do was wrap his arms around her tightly to try and get her to calm down. After a couple of minutes they made their way to the car and got inside.

"For the record," said Evan turning to Rebecca. "I could care less that my parents don't like you at the moment Rebecca. I love you and I'll always love you."

Evan brought his hand up to Rebecca's cheek and wiped the tears off. He knew Rebecca was really upset. She is not one who cries often. This is probably the most he has ever seen her cry.

"And on Saturday you are going to become Mrs. Evan Chambers and have the wedding you have always dreamed of because I wouldn't have it any other way," Evan continued.

"Are you sure?" Rebecca asked.

"Yes," Evan replied. "My parents have no ties to me anymore. I gave up my trust fund, I gave up my position in the company and now I've given up on them. You are the most important person in my life and the only one who matters at the moment. Please tell me that you still want to marry me and what they said in there didn't affect you too much."

"What they said was really harsh," said Rebecca letting a few more tears escape down her cheeks. "But I want nothing more than to become your wife Evan. We're going to have our grand wedding on Saturday. I'll be damned sure about it."

"That's my girl," said Evan with a smile as he leaned in and gave Rebecca a soft kiss on the lips.

Evan wiped the rest of the tears off of her face as he backed away.

"Why don't the two of us go somewhere and have some lunch together since we obviously are not going back in there," said Evan with a small laugh.

"I totally feel like I dined and dashed," said Rebecca. "And I hope I ordered something your parents hate."

"I hope you did too," he replied as he pulled the car out of the parking spot and headed to another restaurant.

* * *

Around seven that night all eight friends met up at Biaggi's, an Italian restaurant near downtown Cyprus. Casey and Ashleigh were able to reserve a private room for the dinner. Everyone looked very nice for the occasion. The three girls were all in sun dresses and all the boys were in button down shirts and ties. After everyone's orders were placed Rebecca motioned for Ashleigh and Casey to join her in the bathroom. The three ladies excused themselves as the boys continued their conversation about the new cell phone Evan got.

"Something wrong Rebecca?" Ashleigh asked as they all stepped into the bathroom.

"Lunch with Evan's parents today was a disaster," she stated. "We ended up walking out before the food even came."

"Why? What happened?" Casey asked.

"They basically tried to tell us to cancel the wedding and go elope," Rebecca replied. "You should have heard some of the things they were saying about me guys. I totally broke down sobbing because I was so hurt."

"Aw Bex," said Ashleigh putting her arm around her. "I hope you told them they can shove their ideas you know where."

"Pretty much," said Rebecca with a small laugh. "I just wanted to make sure I was doing the right thing and get your opinion on things."

"I think you did the right thing," said Ashleigh. "You and Evan are happy together and if you want to go and have your dream wedding then you should go right ahead."

"I agree," Casey added. "And just know that I didn't get along so well with Evan's parents when we were dating either. They are hard people to please and just the littlest mistake can send you straight to the dog house with them."

"Tell me about it," said Rebecca rolling her eyes.

"And I want you to always remember how much Evan loves you Rebecca," Casey continued. "When Evan and I dated he told me I was the only girl who he ever considered even going way off the map with when it came to his parents. But seeing the two of you together and how he has clearly chosen you over his parents has made me realize that you are that girl. I maybe was in theory but you are the girl he actually did it for. It really says something about his love for you. And always remember that."

"Wow Case, that was really sweet of you to say," said Rebecca. "And both of you are right. Marrying Evan in my dream wedding is the best and only way to go this weekend. It's going to be a magical time."

"Shoot, anyone would feel totally like a princess on their wedding day with that glamorous dress you had on earlier today," said Ashleigh with a smile.

"Thanks guys, I love you," said Rebecca giving them each a hug.

"We love you too," said Casey. "But we should probably get back out to the table before the guys think we fell in."

"Good thinking," said Rebecca with a laugh as all three girls headed back to the table to join the boys.

"There's my beautiful wife," said Cappie standing up as Casey and the girls arrived back at the table.

"I'm here," said Casey as she sat in the chair Cappie had pulled out for her.

"Everything OK?" he whispered to her once he sat down.

"Yeah," Casey nodded her head. "Everything is just fine."

Everyone sat around talking amongst themselves for the next half an hour until the food came. The conversation had settled down during dinner but was beginning to pick back up as everyone began finishing their meals. Everyone quieted back down as the waiter arrived back at the table with eight glasses of champagne.

"Uh, we didn't order any champagne," said Casey as the waiter began handing the glasses out.

"I did," said Rebecca. "It's the best stuff on the menu so it should taste awesome."

Casey just gave Rebecca a sheepish smile wondering how she would be able to avoid actually drinking the champagne.

"Everyone I would like the make a toast," said Rebecca standing up.

She cleared her throat and began.

"I just want to say that we have some pretty amazing relationships and friendships around this table," she started. "Cappie and Casey started us off by getting married, having Cadence and truly living the happily ever after life. All of us envy the amazing relationship the two of you have. And then Calvin and Heath had their little ceremony that they didn't invite any of us to. Thanks a lot by the way."

Everyone chuckled at her remark.

"But we are all really happy for the both of you because you're both amazing men with great hearts and hopefully we can celebrate your relationship with an awesome party sooner than later. Next we have Ashleigh and Beaver. I don't think any of us expected the two of you to end up together but you guys have really made it work. Beaver, you've been the most supporting and greatest guy Ashleigh has ever been with. And no one deserves a great guy like you more than her. I'm so lucky to have you two in my life. And finally we have my wonderful husband-to-be. Evan, you're a pretty amazing guy yourself. Everything the two of us have been through has just made us stronger. And I know that we're going to be together forever. I can't wait to marry you on Saturday."

Evan rubbed Rebecca's back as he smiled widely up at her.

"And then we have our amazing friendships," Rebecca continued. "Casey and Ashleigh, you both know how much you mean to me and how I couldn't ask for two better friends. I know things in the beginning weren't so great between all of us. But I'm glad we were able to get past that and become great friends. Cappie, I think you've been an amazing friend to pretty much everyone at this table. But most importantly I want to give you props on your friendship with Evan. You two have a lot of history also and it's nice to see how you have both overcome that time in your lives to be friends again. Calvin, you've been another constant in Evan's life that I think should be noticed. You're pretty much the only Omega Chi brother who was there for him when he gave up his trust fund and without you, I don't think he would have made it much longer in the house. You've been his ally through everything and your kindness is such an amazing quality about you. I just think it's wonderful how all of us have overcome so much to be here tonight. There aren't any other seven people in the world I would want to be here right now. Not only are all of you my friends, you're my family and I love each and every one of you. So let's toast our glasses to continued friendships and a forever-lasting family."

Everyone stood and clanked their glasses together.

"Beautiful speech Rebecca," said Casey trying to keep Rebecca from noticing she wasn't drinking any of the champagne.

"Thanks," Rebecca replied holding her glass out towards Casey. "To us!"

Casey clanked her glass with Rebecca's and watched her take a drink. Immediately Rebecca shot her a confused look. Casey knew this was it.

"Um, why aren't you drinking?" Rebecca asked.

The table grew eerily silent with Rebecca's question. Everyone was now staring at Casey, waiting for the answer they were all hoping for. Casey finally smiled and snaked her arm around Cappie's waist.

"It's true," she said. "I'm not drinking because Cappie and I are expecting again."

"Yay!" exclaimed Rebecca running over to Casey and giving her a hug. "I'm so excited for you!"

"Thanks," Casey replied as several other of the guests congratulated her and Cappie.

"See, that wasn't so bad," Cappie whispered in her ear as he leaned over and gave her a kiss on the cheek.

"Well Ash," said Rebecca turning to her. "It looks like you and I are going to have to toast our friendship for Casey then."

Rebecca clanked glasses with Ashleigh's and watched the same situation unfold. She took a drink but Ashleigh casually set her drink on the table.

"I, uh, can't drink either," she said softly.

But it was certainly loud enough for everyone to hear. All conversations dropped and eyes darted to Ashleigh and Beaver.

"Ashleigh are you expecting?" Calvin asked.

Ashleigh just stood there with her face full of shock, this was coming out a lot sooner than she had planned. Finally Beaver stepped in and put his arm around Ashleigh.

"Yes, the Thompsons are happily expecting a little Beaver in our future," he said with a proud daddy smile.

"Shut up!" said Rebecca.

"Holy shit Ash!" exclaimed Casey.

Both girls ran over to Ashleigh quickly and put their arms around her, almost tackling her to the ground.

"We're going to be pregnant together!" Casey yelled.

"Yup, certainly looks that way," said Ashleigh, still embarrassed about the news.

"Congratulations dude," said Cappie as he went up to Beaver. "We can now experience the hell of pregnancy together."

"Ha, right," said Beaver with a laugh. "And congrats to you too."

"Thanks," Cappie replied. "How long have you guys known?"

"Like a day," Beaver replied. "Ashleigh wondered why she ate so many pancakes a breakfast yesterday morning that the two of us ran out last night after we left Casey and got the test."

"So she hasn't gotten any morning sickness?" Cappie asked.

"Nope, she really hasn't had any symptoms other than being hungrier than usual," Beaver replied.

"I'm going to be so pissed if you don't get any morning sickness," said Casey to Ashleigh jokingly. "I've already gotten it full blown. Hence, why I didn't make it to breakfast yesterday."

"Well hopefully it will get better soon," said Ashleigh.

Everyone who could have a drink then toasted the two happy couples expecting new babies. Overall it was an exciting night for everyone. Not only did they get to share time with their closest friends but they also got to share new and exciting news and anticipate a beautiful wedding in just a short week. There was something about their friendship that was special and they all knew it. They have the type of friendship that is lasting and forever; one where they can look forward to spending more memories, events and special moments like this in the years to come.

* * *

**_A/N: Sooooooo what did you guys think?!?! Ashleigh is preggo! WOO HOO! Nice call on that one Redd2cool4u :0) I really liked how everything played out in this chapter._**

**_Who else is excited for the new episodes to start tomorrow?!?! I know I am! I seriously can't believe I kept this story going throughout the hiatus....it's still crazy for me to think about!_**

**_I originally wasn't going to post a new chapter tomorrow with the new episode and everything but the next chapter is a really sweet one and I think it's a perfect read to get excited for the new episode tomorrow so I'm going to go ahead and post it tomorrow. Plus I know there are some overseas people who don't get to see the episode until the next day so I'll still have something for you guys to read :0) And for any C/C fans out there, I know the past couple of chapters haven't had much of them in them but tomorrow's chapter will be pretty much all C/C so it's coming I promise :0)_**

**_Keep the reviews coming....I'm excited to see what you guys think of the latest story developments._**


	108. Twists and Turns

TWISTS AND TURNS

The next morning Casey actually made it down to breakfast with Cappie, Beaver and Ashleigh. But the only thing she got was a piece of toast and some hot tea. She had been up with morning sickness for the past hour but felt like she was OK to join them and try to eat some breakfast.

"That dinner last night was really great," said Ashleigh. "I guess it ended up being the perfect time to share the news with everyone."

"I still can't believe that we're both pregnant," said Casey taking a sip of her tea. "I didn't even know you guys were trying to have a baby."

"Well we really weren't," said Beaver. "We were going with the 'whatever happens will happen' approach. And I guess the man upstairs decided it's time for us to have a baby."

"I couldn't be happier for you two," said Cappie. "I think you are going to have a beautiful baby. Not as beautiful as ours of course but still beautiful."

"Thanks Cap," said Beaver with a small laugh while rolling his eyes.

"I'm really going to be looking at you for advice on this whole thing Case," said Ashleigh. "Because I obviously don't know the first thing about being pregnant."

"We should probably go and get you some prenatal vitamins today," said Casey. "And when we get back to Chicago you can see if you can get an appointment with Dr. Snyder. It's then she'll get a good idea how far along you are and make sure everything is OK."

"Dr. Snyder is great," added Cappie. "She's really easy to talk to and always available if you have any questions."

Casey was trying as best as she could to keep up with the conversation but a small bout of nausea had hit her.

"Excuse me. I'll be right back," she said standing up and making her way towards the bathroom.

"How has she been since you guys found out you were pregnant?" Ashleigh asked Cappie. "I know with everything that happened before she was pretty scared to even get pregnant again."

"She's still scared," Cappie replied. "And she thinks about it almost constantly unless she's occupied somehow. When Rebecca was missing she said she hardly even thought about it because her mind was focused on something else. And she was nervous about telling everyone because she didn't want to do it too soon and find out something is wrong with the baby."

"So you guys aren't totally sure everything is OK this time?" Beaver asked.

"No," Cappie replied. "We tried to get in to see Dr. Snyder before we left for Ohio but she was booked. We have an appointment next week with her though. I'm hoping Casey can calm down once we have that appointment and she knows everything is OK."

"Yeah, she shouldn't be stressed like that," said Ashleigh. "It can't be good for the baby."

"I know," Cappie replied. "That's why I've got some stuff planned today to hopefully keep her mind off the pregnancy for a while."

"What are you doing?" Beaver asked.

"We're going to take a trip to campus and walk around, reminisce of old times," said Cappie. "She loves doing those type of things and I'm sure it will help her focus her mind away from the baby."

"Speaking of babies," said Ashleigh. "Mine is still making me incredibly hungry. I'm off to get some more food."

Cappie turned to Beaver once Ashleigh left the table.

"So what do you think about becoming a daddy?" Cappie asked.

"I'm pretty excited," Beaver replied. "I know it's probably not going to be an easy journey but I'm up for the challenge."

"That's good," said Cappie. "Besides, you are wonderful with Cadence. I'm sure you're going to make a great father."

"Is there anything specifically I need to do?" Beaver asked. "It just doesn't seem quite fair that she really has to do all the work."

"That is true," said Cappie with a small laugh. "But your job is just going to really be there for Ashleigh. She's probably going to be pretty emotional and I can already see many, many food craving shopping trips in your future."

"Oh goody," said Beaver with a smile.

"It's really not that bad," said Cappie. "I know with Casey, I love her so much that being there for her during the pregnancy is pretty much second nature for me. It's something that I want to do knowing that she is carrying a part of me inside her. The whole thing is just a miracle and there is nothing in the world better than experiencing everything from rubbing the bump on her stomach to holding the baby in your arms for the first time."

"I really hope everything is OK with the baby for you two this time around," said Beaver. "You guys deserve it more than anyone I know."

It was then Casey returned to the table and plopped down in her seat.

"Everything OK?" Cappie asked putting his arm around her.

"Yeah, it was a false alarm more or less," Casey replied. "I can't wait until this will hopefully be over in the next couple of weeks."

"I know sweetheart," Cappie replied.

"So I think my eyes are definitely bigger than my stomach," said Ashleigh returning to the table with a mound of food of her plate.

"Ugh, I don't know how you can eat so much," groaned Casey. "I'm barely able to eat this toast."

"It's strange how two women can be pregnant but have totally opposite side effects," said Beaver.

"Sure is," said Ashleigh taking a bite of her eggs.

"Anyone know what Rebecca and Evan are doing today?" Casey asked. "Maybe we should all spend the afternoon together."

"Actually I had something planned for just the two of us," said Cappie looking at her.

"Really? How come I didn't know about this?" Casey asked.

"Uh, cause I didn't tell you," said Cappie with a smile.

"But I don't want to leave everyone else with nothing to do," said Casey.

"It's fine," said Ashleigh. "Beaver and I can call Bex and Evan and see what they are up to. We can always catch a movie or something. You two deserve some time together."

"Yes we do," said Cappie smiling at Casey.

The four of them finished breakfast and went to their rooms to get ready for the day. Ashleigh ended up getting a hold of Rebecca and they decided to get together later in the afternoon for dinner and a movie.

It was around four o'clock when Cappie decided it was time to take Casey out.

"You're still not going to tell me where we're going are you?" Casey asked as they got into the elevator.

"It's nothing major," Cappie replied. "We're really just going to go for a walk."

"Somehow I think there is going to be something more than just a walk," said Casey as the elevator door opened and they headed to the Jeep.

About twenty minutes later Cappie pulled into a parking lot in the middle of the Cyprus Rhodes campus. The parking lot was completely empty and the campus itself was bare as students were home for the summer.

"Why are we at campus?" Casey asked.

"To go for a walk," Cappie replied as he got out of the car.

He went over to the other side and helped Casey out of the Jeep. He took her hand into his and they began to walk towards Greek row.

"So I know you've been worrying about the baby a lot," said Cappie. "And I thought taking a stroll through campus and reminiscing about old times will help take your mind off things."

"And what kind of things are we going to reminisce about?" Casey asked thinking Cappie's actions were just a little strange.

"Wherever the walk takes us my love," Cappie replied. "Who knows when we'll be back here and be able to do something like this. Especially with campus this dead so we're not trying to walk around a ton of people."

The next thing Casey knew Cappie was leading her up to the Kappa Tau house.

"This house sure has a lot of memories," said Casey as Cappie opened the door and led her inside. "I can't believe you guys leave the door unlocked."

"Look around Case, there isn't exactly much people would want to steal," said Cappie with a small laugh.

"Guess you're right," Casey replied.

Cappie led her into the living room and the two of them sat down on one of the run-down couches.

"So what memory comes to mind in this room?" Cappie asked.

"Probably the two of us passing out on this couch freshman year after the hell-raisers and heartbreakers party," said Casey with a small laugh. "It was probably one of the most uncomfortable nights I ever had."

"Ah, yes, but it didn't matter because your tummy was full of lemon meringue pie," said Cappie. "I think you pretty much ate the whole pie yourself."

"Well I'm sorry I had the munchies," said Casey. "It was the first time I had ever gotten stoned."

"Yeah, you were pretty funny that night," said Cappie. "I wasn't even allowed to let you go to go to the bathroom without you becoming paranoid and scared of everything around you."

"Yeah, yeah," said Casey rolling her eyes.

"But the hell-raisers and heartbreakers party is not the memory that comes to my mind in this room," said Cappie.

"Really?" Casey asked. "What are you thinking about then?"

"I'll give you a hint," said Cappie as he stood up and waved his hand in the air. "No other girl in the world compares to you."

"Oh my," said Casey as the memory vividly popped up in her head.

"Tell me something," said Cappie. "What do you think really would have happened if the two of us went up to my room and studied that night?"

"Probably another fond trip down memory lane that I would have regretted," Casey replied.

"Oh come on, don't tell me you were that hung up on Max," said Cappie. "You were more hung up on him because he gave up Cal-Tech for you and you would have felt bad dumping him after he did that for you."

"Yeah, you're right," said Casey. "I just couldn't get over how hung up you still were on me."

"I think that night was yet another one of our missed chances," said Cappie looking at Casey still sitting on the couch.

"We sure had plenty of them didn't we?" Casey asked.

Cappie just nodded his head as he took her hand and pulled her up off the couch.

"Where are we going?" Casey asked as Cappie pulled her out of the living room.

"To another missed chance," he replied as he pulled Casey into the closet underneath the stairs.

"I believe this place was your missed chance, not mine," said Casey as Cappie turned on the light.

"Yeah, I was probably the biggest idiot in the world when I let you walk out of this closet," said Cappie with a sigh.

"I still don't understand why you did that Cap," said Casey. "What was going through your head?"

"I meant what I said Case," said Cappie. "You had a traumatic event and often times it causes people to not think clearly."

"But you know I would never say anything I didn't mean," said Casey.

"I know," said Cappie. "But I had been hurt so many times from you in the past that I couldn't take it again. I couldn't take waking up the next morning with you walking out of my room regretting what had happened."

Casey looked at Cappie with a solemn expression. She loosely wrapped her arms around his waist.

"I really hurt you back then didn't I?" she asked softly as she looked right in Cappie's eyes.

"You did," said Cappie.

"I guess it's pretty crappy to realize years later how much I hurt you in the past," said Casey. "And for the record I'm sorry. I know I played with your heart and it was wrong of me to do so."

"And I was wrong to ever let you go from this closet," said Cappie. "I felt the most amazing fireworks when you just came in and kissed me that night. It took everything I had to pull you away from me."

"You mean like this," said Casey with a smile as she plunged her lips towards Cappie for a kiss much like the two of them shared the night of the End of the World party.

The only difference with this one was that Cappie didn't pull away. Instead he wrapped his arms around Casey and pulled her tighter to him. They each backed away at the same time, gasping for air.

"That was much better than the last time," said Casey with a huge smile on her face.

"Come on," said Cap. "Let's go upstairs."

Cappie opened the door and led Casey upstairs to his old bedroom. He opened the door to the room which was almost empty. The only things that remained were the bed, desk and dresser that were all property of the school.

"Hard to believe Rusty was the one to occupy this room after me," said Cappie as he went over and sat on the bed.

"We've had some pretty good memories in this room," said Casey sitting next to Cappie. "This is where we officially got back together once we found out about the baby."

"Yeah, and pretty much where we officially broke up freshman year," said Cappie. "After the Greek Ball I moved into the house to get away from Evan after everything that happened. And you came prancing in a couple of days later to get your stuff."

"I was not prancing," argued Casey. "I was just as hurt as you were."

"I highly doubt that," said Cappie. "You can't begin to know how devastated I was. For my girlfriend to leave me for my roommate and best friend, that's harsh."

"But you knew why I did it," said Casey. "You were always blowing me off for your brothers. I wasn't that important to you at that time."

Cappie just smiled.

"What?" Casey asked.

"You really have no idea the kind of effect you had on me Case," said Cappie. "All through high school I was always the ladies man, never committing to one girl. But that first night I laid eyes on you at the Kappa Tau party I was done. I had never been more mesmerized by a girl in my entire life. You were and still are the only girl, other than my mother, who I have told that I love. That's why it hurt so badly when you ended things."

"If you really cared about me so much why did you always seem to choose your brothers over me?" Casey asked.

"The same way you chose your sisters over me sometimes," said Cappie. "I was the Kappa Tau golden child. I wanted nothing more than to be a Kappa Tau brother and as a pledge I had to go where they said to go and do what they said to do. Besides, I included you whenever I could."

"Yeah but sometimes I just wanted to be alone with you," said Casey.

"But did you ever tell me that?" Cappie asked looking her in the eyes.

Casey hesitated.

"No, I guess I didn't," she replied.

"So how was I supposed to know there was even a problem?" Cappie asked. "I assumed everything was fine until I found you dancing with Evan at the Greek Ball."

"Yeah, that probably wasn't the smartest move on my part," said Casey.

Cappie turned to Casey and gently laid her back on the bed, positioning himself on top of her.

"How about this one?" he asked with a smile. "I know where I want to be in ten years, do you?"

"Oh god, I was such an idiot then," said Casey. "Who was I fooling thinking I had a ten year plan at the time?"

"Sure you had a ten year plan," said Cappie. "It was to be married to Evan being his little bitch while he ran off and cheated on you."

"Ouch," said Casey with a smile, even though she was pretty sure Cappie was telling the truth.

"I still kick myself to this day for opening my big mouth that day," said Cappie. "I always wonder what would have happened if I didn't tell you about bribing the TA."

"I was like putty in your hands that day until you told me that," said Casey.

"Would you have dumped Evan if it was really fate that brought us together?" Cappie asked.

"I probably would have dumped Evan," Casey replied. "But I'm not sure if I would have jumped back in your arms right away."

"Really?" Cappie asked. "I thought you were putty in my hands."

Casey laughed.

"I don't think I could have allowed myself to jump right back to you because it would be like bouncing between you and Evan which would be kind of weird for anyone looking from the outside."

"I don't think so," said Cappie. "I think you and I were pretty much the only ones who didn't see we were meant to be together in all honesty. We were the stubborn ones. Everyone else knew we were meant to be together but the two of us."

"Gosh, I can't believe the number of missed chances we've had," said Casey.

"The important thing is that we got it right in the end though," said Cappie with a smile.

"Yeah, but who knows if we had never had Cadence if we would be together."

"We would be together," Cappie said very sure of himself. "Who knows when or how it would happen but it would. Deep down my heart would never let you go."

"Aw Cap," said Casey as she pulled him down to meet her lips for an intimate kiss.

"You know," said Cappie backing away with a sly smile. "One memory I sure don't have is making love to you in this room."

Casey paused to think about it for a second.

"You're right," she said, also smiling. "We have never made love in this room."

Cappie leaned down towards her ear and whispered, "No time like the present to make a memory."

Instantly Casey pulled Cappie's head towards hers and began kissing him passionately. Soon clothes were being thrown to the ground and the two of them made love in the bed they never got the chance to do so in.

Afterwards they were each wrapped up in the sheet on the bed cuddling in each other's arms.

"I seriously can't believe that we had never made love in this bed before," said Casey. "With as many times as I had stayed the night here and spent time here."

"Yeah, but you forget you were pregnant," said Cappie. "I wasn't about to try anything until I got the doctor's OK to do so."

"Always looking out," said Casey with a small laugh as she snuggled deeper into Cappie's bare chest.

"I'm really excited for the future and new memories to come," said Cappie squeezing Casey tighter. "We've really come a long way. I bet you didn't think ten years from that moment you would really be with me."

"I certainly didn't," said Casey. "I thought you were crazy."

"I think it's crazy to think we're going to have two or more kids together by the time that ten years rolls around," said Cappie.

"Look at you already planning our next child when we haven't even had this one yet," said Casey jokingly.

"Hey, I may not have been too focused on the future back then," said Cappie. "But I'm always thinking about the future now."

Casey kissed Cappie's bare chest and looked out the window.

"We should probably get going," she said. "It's already dark outside."

Casey got out of bed and began putting her clothes back on. Cappie did the same when he was sparked with an idea. He finished putting his clothes on and waited for Casey to finish also.

"Come here," he said walking over to the window. "I want to show you something."

Cappie opened the window and climbed out onto the roof.

"Cap what are you doing?" Casey asked peeking her head through the window.

"Come out here," said Cappie as he reached his hand out to help her onto the roof.

Casey made it on the roof and they both sat there staring at the night sky.

"Is it safe to be up here?" she asked.

"Of course," said Cappie. "I used to sit out here all of the time. I usually do my best thinking out here."

"Wait, was this where you were when Ashleigh told you I broke up with Max at the End of the World party?" Casey asked.

"Yup, sitting right here," Cappie replied. "And I probably sat here for about an hour thinking about what I did and probably how stupid I was."

"I'm surprised you never brought me up here," said Casey.

"It was usually you I was thinking about when I came out here," said Cappie. "So that would kind of defeat the purpose by having you up here."

"Guess you're right," said Casey as she turned to smile at Cappie.

Cappie scooted closer to Casey and put his arm around her.

"You know, I was sitting up here one night with Rusty and Calvin talking about girls," he said. "And it was at that moment that I realized you were my soul mate."

"Wow, look at you getting all nostalgic on me here," said Casey as she leaned her head against his shoulder.

"Well not to mention the same night I fell off this roof," said Cappie with a laugh.

"Oh my gosh," said Casey looking at how far off the ground they were. "Were you hurt?"

"No, I landed on one of the inflatable bouncy things," Cappie replied. "I was just fine."

The two of them sat on the roof for about a half an hour. Each of them was silent and just staring at the night sky. It was probably one of the most peaceful moments each of them had experienced in a long time. Their peaceful silence was broken when Cappie's cell phone rang.

"Hello?" he said as he answered the phone.

"Hi da-da!" said Cadence.

"Cadence, what are you doing using the phone?" Cappie asked her jokingly.

"Miss you da-da," said Cadence.

"I miss you too sweetheart," said Cappie. "Are you having a good time with grandma and grandpa?"

"Yup," Cadence replied. "We play."

"Here, I'm going to let you talk to your mommy," said Cappie with a chuckle as he handed the phone to Casey.

"Who is this?" Casey asked jokingly.

"It's me ma-ma," Cadence replied.

"Hi baby," said Casey. "Are you being a good girl?"

"Yup," Cadence replied. "Here Russy ma-ma."

"Hey Case," said Rusty as he got the phone from Cadence. "I hope we're not interrupting anything. Cadence just kept asking where mommy and daddy were and I thought it would help her if she talked to you on the phone."

"Of course that's OK," said Casey. "I miss her a lot and I know Cap does too."

"I saw on the news what happened with Rebecca," said Rusty.

"Yeah, she kept us on the edge of our seats for a while," Casey replied. "But everything is OK now and she and Evan are still getting married this weekend."

"Well good," said Rusty. "Cadence and I are going to make our way there on Thursday. We may get in late Thursday or early Friday depending on if I decide to stop at a hotel for the night. I'll keep you posted as to what we're doing."

"That's fine," Casey replied. "Jordan is excited to see you. She really misses you."

"I can't wait to see her either," Rusty replied.

"And I can't wait to see Cadence," said Casey. "I miss her a lot too."

"Speaking of Cadence," said Rusty. "She's pulling at my leg to read her a story so I'm going to get going now."

"OK Rusty, thanks for calling," said Casey. "We'll see you in a couple of days."

"Bye Case."

"Bye."

Casey hung up the phone and gave it back to Cappie.

"That was nice hearing Cadence's voice," said Casey. "I didn't realize how much I was missing her."

"Yeah, she's pretty cute," Cappie replied. "We should probably get going too."

"Yeah, OK," said Casey.

Cappie walked around her and climbed in the window first. He reached out and grabbed Casey's hand and helped her inside the house. The two of them went out of the house and began walking down Greek row hand in hand.

Cappie stopped when they reached the front of the ZBZ house.

"I don't think we're going to be able to get in there," said Casey. "Unlike you guys, we actually lock our door."

"No, I'm thinking about what happened right here several years ago," said Cappie looking at Casey.

Casey scrunched her eyebrows together trying to think of what Cappie was talking about. She finally gave in.

"I give up," she said. "What happened here that you're thinking about?"

"When Evan lavaliered you," Cappie replied.

"Ew, that wasn't a very good moment," said Casey. "I wish you didn't have to see that. It made it like hundred times worse than it already was."

"And why's that?" Cappie asked.

"Because right before the Omega Chi brothers came singing at our front door I had your name highlighted on my phone and just seconds away from calling you," she said softly.

"Really?" Cappie asked with shock written all over his face. "I guess that kiss on my bed meant a lot more than you led me to believe."

"It did," Casey replied. "But I was worried about pleasing Frannie and the rest of the sorority that I never acted on what I really felt."

"Which was?" Cappie asked.

"That I wanted to be with you," Casey replied looking at the ground. "Seeing you look at me that night while I hugged Evan broke my heart into a million pieces. It was you I should have been hugging, not him."

"Well we all make mistakes in life," said Cappie putting his hand on Casey's chin to make her look at him. "The important thing is that we learn from them."

"Yeah," said Casey softly.

"And we've both learned from our mistakes," Cappie continued. "Because we are together now and you have the proper letters around your neck this time around."

Cappie touched the diamond letters around Casey's neck and smiled.

"Should I sing to you so we can rewrite the past?" Cappie asked with a smile.

"How about I just tell you that I love you and you let me give you a hug and a kiss like I should have done all those years ago?" Casey asked as she wrapped her arms around Cappie's neck and leaned in to give him a kiss.

"I love you too Case," said Cappie as he backed away.

The two of them clasped hands and made their way down to the end of Greek row. The next thing Casey knew Cappie was leading her off campus.

"Where are we going?" Casey asked.

"I've got one more place," said Cappie as he squeezed her hand.

A few minutes later they arrived at the park just off campus. Casey knew exactly why they were there. Cappie led her over to a spot on the grass and sat down, pulling her into her lap.

"I assume you know why we're here," he said brushing the back of her hair with his hand.

"Yeah," said Casey looking into his eyes.

"I like to think of this place as the place where my life finally began," said Cappie as he wrapped his arms around Casey tightly.

"Really?" Casey asked becoming somewhat choked up.

"Of course," Cappie replied. "This is where I learned about Cadence. It was probably one of the most tense moments of my entire life."

"You were tense?" said Casey. "Imagine how I felt. I was terrified."

"But look how everything turned out?" said Cappie. "Here we are married with one child, another child on the way and I don't think either of us could be happier."

"I have to admit Cap, you really surprised me with your reaction to the baby," said Casey. "I knew you wouldn't run the other way or anything. I just didn't expect you to step up so much."

"You know I did it for you just as much as I did it for Cadence," said Cappie brushing the side of Casey's face. "I've never stopped loving you Casey. I've loved you since the first time I told you when we were laying in the snow. It just took a little while for my brain to catch up to my heart. But I'm really glad it finally did."

"Me too," said Casey as a tear escaped her eye. "I really couldn't picture my life without you in it. You calling me that night when you were drunk was probably the best move you've ever made."

"It sure was," said Cappie as he wiped the tear off of Casey's cheek. "And even though the two of us have had a crazy ride together since freshman year, I still wouldn't trade anything for the world."

"Me neither," Casey replied as she leaned down and gave Cappie a soft kiss on the lips.

There was a brief silence between the two of them after they broke away from the kiss.

"Thanks for doing this today Cap," Casey finally said. "Everything was absolutely perfect."

"And I bet you it kept your mind off of the baby," stated Cappie.

"Yeah, it sure did," said Casey with a small smile.

"Good, that was the point," Cappie replied. "I don't want you to get all stressed and worried about it. I have a real good feeling about the baby this time. Everything is going to be OK."

Casey's smile increased.

"What?" Cappie asked wondering what he had said to make her smile grow.

"You said that exact phrase to me right here when I told you about Cadence," said Casey. "You told me everything was going to be OK. I heard that from both Rusty and Ashleigh who knew about the pregnancy before you. But hearing those words come out of your mouth that night made all the difference. I finally felt like I wasn't completely alone with everything."

"You're never going to have to go through anything alone as long as I have something to do about it Case," said Cappie softly.

"And you're right," said Casey. "Everything is going to be OK this time. We are going to have a beautiful second child and as long as we have each other everything is going to be fine, right?"

"Of course," Cappie replied. "We're soul mates remember? Any couple who can get through all the twists and turns we've been through deserves the title of soul mates."

"I couldn't agree with you more," said Casey brushing her hand on Cappie cheek as he squeezed her a little tighter.

Casey then leaned Cappie down onto the grass and began kissing him passionately. He rubbed his hands up and down the sides of her waist as he deepened the kiss. Casey was finally the one who broke away.

"While my body is screaming to make love to you again right now, I just don't think this is the place for it," she said with a little chuckle.

"Yeah, we don't need another memory of getting arrested for having sex in public," said Cappie. "We can always continue this at the hotel."

"I'll be looking forward to it," said Casey as she stood up.

She reached down for Cappie's hand and helped him stand up off the ground. She then wrapped her arms around his waist and snuggled into his chest.

"Thanks again for an amazing time," she said. "I love you so much."

"I love you too," said Cappie as Casey backed away and gave him a soft kiss on the lips.

The two of them began walking hand in hand back to the Jeep. Cappie smiled the entire way back realizing how well things had really gone for the day. He also smiled realizing how many unanswered questions he had got answers to during their trip down memory lane. He had no idea Casey was almost going to come to him the night Evan lavaliered her. Even though they were married and living happily ever after at the moment, it was important for him to have some of those questions answered. It brought a little bit of closure to their rocky past and in a sense made it just a little bit easier for them to move on in the future. He could finally tell Casey seemed to be a little less tense when it came to the new baby which was good for her and the baby's sake. It was only a matter of time before his thoughts would be confirmed that the baby inside of her was indeed as healthy as could be. That was the only way it could be. After everything they had been through, he wasn't sure if either of them would be able to take another failed pregnancy.

* * *

**_A/N: So this chapter ended up being like WAY longer than I planned for it to be....haha. I think I have broken the record for the longest chapter of this story with this one. But it was just so easy to write. As much as I loved the scene where Cappie and Casey got back together in the Wish Pretzel, I feel like they still have a lot of unanswered questions about the past that the writers probably won't bring up. So I wrote it in my story instead....LoL. I hope you guys liked it....I thought it was a perfect chapter to read before the new episode tonight.....WOO HOO!! I'm super excited already :0)_**

**_And this also brings us to the ever so sad ending to my daily updates :0( With the season starting and the Save Greek campaign picking up I have fallen behind on my writing and I think less frequent updates will be OK now that we have Greek to actually watch. I will do my very best to get at least a couple of updates a week so no worries....I'm not going to let this go. I know there are a lot of hooked readers out there and there is of course plenty to still write with Rebecca's wedding and Ash and Casey's pregnancies. I have really enjoyed writing this story to help get everyone though the hiatus and like I said before, it certainly has become much bigger than I anticipated....LoL. Keep the amazing reviews coming....they always bring a smile to my face and motivation to write :0) I'll look forward to seeing what you guys thought of this chapter._**


	109. The Wild Side

THE WILD SIDE

Two days later Calvin, Evan, Cappie and Beaver all went to play golf while the girls had a day full of spa appointments.

"I don't understand why women feel the need to have a spa appointment with every event that happens in their lives," complained Evan as he put his golf ball on the tee to take his shot.

"Speak for yourself," said Beaver. "My girl hardly ever goes to the spa. I think it's just a Rebecca thing."

"She is pretty high maintenance like that," added Calvin.

"She is not," argued Evan.

Calvin and Beaver just looked at each other rolled their eyes.

"What do you think Cap?" Evan asked.

All eyes turned to Cappie.

"Uh, I, uh," he stuttered not wanting to answer the question. "I think this is a beautiful day for golf and you should take your shot Evan."

Evan put his hand on his hip and glared at Cappie.

"Come on man, we're good friends. You can tell me the truth," said Evan.

Cappie took a deep breath.

"Personally, I think you're both high maintenance," said Cappie. "That's why you work so well together."

"I am totally not high maintenance," said Evan squaring up to take his shot.

"You are too Ev," said Cappie. "Everything with you has to be planned out. You're always dressed in your nice button down shirts. There's nothing wrong with it, it's just who you are."

"I can be spontaneous," said Evan as he hit the golf ball.

"Sure you can," said Cappie sarcastically rolling his eyes as he set his golf ball on the tee to hit the ball.

"So when is Rusty coming into town?" asked Calvin trying to change the subject.

"He will be here tomorrow or Friday," said Cappie taking a big swing of his golf club. "He's bringing Cadence."

Calvin and Beaver each took their shots and the boys made their way to the next hole.

"How about Heath?" Evan asked. "When is he getting in town?"

"Hopefully Friday," said Calvin. "He's been really tied up at work. People keep getting sick for some reason."

"Hey, you're the one who married a doctor," said Evan.

"Things won't be so bad when he is an actual doctor," said Calvin. "But he's only in residency right now and the long nights are really starting to get to him."

"He'll be fine," said Cappie. "Heath has always been a determined guy. I have no doubt that he'll get through it."

After the boys finished the last hole Evan and Cappie went to turn the golf cart in while Calvin and Beaver went to go get some beers for everyone.

"You know, I'm still kind of bothered about what you said earlier today," said Evan as he began to drive to the golf cart return place.

"It's really not a big deal Ev," said Cappie. "I'm your friend. Friends are honest with each other. You've been the way you are your entire life and I wouldn't be your friend if I had a problem with the way you are."

"But I thought when we became friends again you were beginning to rub off on me a little," said Evan. "I thought giving up my trust fund took me out of the 'Evan everyone knows' category."

"Speaking of trust fund, have you spoken to your parents?" Cappie asked.

"You're trying to change the subject," Evan glared at him.

"OK, yes, sort of, I am," said Cappie. "But I also am concerned about your parents with the wedding this weekend. I know deep down you want them to be there."

"To answer your question, no, I haven't talked to my parents," said Evan. "And I'm sure they will be there on Saturday because it will look bad in the press if they don't show up to their son's wedding. But back to the issue at hand."

"There is no issue at hand dude," said Cappie as Evan parked the golf cart. "You're the one who is making a huge deal out of nothing."

"How can I prove to you that I'm not the same stuck up, preppy, high maintenance Evan?"

"You really don't have to prove anything to me," said Cappie as they began walking back to the club house to meet up with Calvin and Beaver.

"Well if I don't have to prove anything to you I at least want to prove something to myself," said Evan.

"OK Evan Almighty," said Cappie with a small laugh. "What do you plan on doing? Be a daredevil and unbutton the top two buttons of your shirt to show a little skin?"

Evan turned and rolled his eyes at Cappie.

"What? I thought that was a good one," said Cappie with a smile.

"I need to go big, do something no one would expect me to do," said Evan, searching his brain for all possible ideas.

"Well whatever you do, I'm right there with ya bud," said Cappie putting his arm around Evan. He really couldn't picture Evan doing anything too crazy so agreeing to do whatever he was going to do only seemed like a safe thing to do.

The two walked the rest of the way to the club house in silence.

"What took you guys so long?" Beaver asked as they met them at a table by the bar.

"Evan here wants to prove to us that he's a rebel," said Cappie as he sat down and took the beer Beaver had gotten for him.

"We could shave your head. That would be a statement," said Beaver to Evan.

"Yeah and have Rebecca kill me because our wedding pictures would be ruined? I don't think so," said Evan.

"We could go to a gay bar," said Calvin. "That's a walk on the wild side."

"Uh, no thank you," said Evan. "Not exactly what I was looking for."

"We could tee pee your parent's house tonight," said Beaver.

"That's so high school," said Evan. "I need something more manly."

All the boys looked around and stared at each other. They really weren't sure what Evan had in mind. Suddenly Evan looked like he was sparked with an idea. He went up to the bartender and got a phone book from him. The three boys watched as Evan searched through the phone book before pulling out his phone and making a couple of phone calls. He finally made his way back to their table with a huge smile on his face.

"What did you do, take a trip on the wild side and make a prank phone call?" Cappie asked. "Send twenty pizzas to your parent's house?"

Calvin and Beaver laughed as Evan sat back down in his chair.

"You boys are coming up with the most childish things," he said with a smirk. "I've got us doing something much more manly later this afternoon."

"And what would this be?" Calvin asked.

"We, my friends, are going skydiving," said Evan.

All three jaws dropped once the words left Evan's mouth.

"Uh, my doctor told me I'm not allowed to skydive," said Beaver trying to come up with an excuse. "Something about how it will hurt my liver."

"Riiight," Evan replied. "Nice try Beave. But you guys are all doing this with me. We have appointments at 4 o'clock."

"Whoa my daredevil friend," said Cappie turning to Evan. "Did you ever think to realize that skydiving is dangerous and probably not the best thing to do three days before your wedding?"

"Oh come on Cap, people do it all of the time," said Evan.

"Yes, and people also have faulty parachutes that don't open and they break every bone in their body as they hit the ground," said Cappie. "I personally don't think any of us could pull off the whole body cast look."

"You're being ridiculous Cap," said Evan. "We are going to be fine. Each of us is going to be with an instructor."

"Ev, I've got kids and a wife to support," said Cappie.

"Now you're just making all kinds of excuses Cap," said Evan becoming a little upset. "You stood there and told me you would do whatever I chose to do. And I chose skydiving and your ass is going to do it with me whether you like it or not."

"Does that mean we don't have to do it?" Beaver asked for him and Calvin.

"Yes, you guys do too," said Evan. "Come on guys, this will probably be the best manly bonding experience we've ever had. Let's live on the edge a little bit."

"I'm just fine living here on the ground," said Calvin.

Evan sat back in his chair and stared at the three other boys. Finally Cappie spoke up.

"Alright fine, you're right Evan," he said. "If we're going to do something big we might as well do it right."

"That's the Cappie I know," said Evan. "Man, Casey has sure made you soft."

"Speaking of Casey," said Calvin. "Are we going to tell our significant others what we are going to be doing this afternoon?"

All four boys looked around at each other waiting for someone to answer as they were all unsure of what to say.

"I say Calvin, you can do whatever you want to do since Heath isn't here yet," said Evan. "But I think one of the three of us should call one girl and then the rest will know and we all don't have to go through it."

"So who's going to be the lucky one?" Calvin asked.

After exchanging glances Beaver, Evan and Calvin all looked at Cappie.

"Me? Why me?" Cappie asked.

"Because Casey will let you do anything," said Evan.

"Did you forget that she's pregnant?" Cappie asked. "She's liable to go off the deep end with the way her hormones have been going all over the place lately."

"It'll be fine," said Evan. "Just give her a call and hope she doesn't answer. Then leave the message on her voicemail and we won't even have to worry about it."

Cappie glared at his friends.

"Please Cap?" Beaver begged.

"I think you should do it Beave," said Cappie. "Ashleigh's pregnancy side effects are a lot better than Casey's."

"Stop stalling and just do it Cap," said Evan. "She's probably getting a massage right now anyway and won't be able to answer the phone."

Cappie took a deep breath as he pulled out his phone.

"Wish me luck," he said as he stood up and went to make the phone call outside in private.

After three rings Cappie thought he was off the hook but Casey answered just as the voicemail was about to pick up.

"Hey honey," she answered the phone.

"Hey," said Cappie trying not to sound nervous. "What are you doing?"

"I'm just sitting out in the lobby waiting for Rebecca and Ashleigh to get done with their massages," said Casey. "Then we're moving on to get our nails done."

"Sounds exciting," said Cappie sarcastically.

"Did you need something?" Casey asked ignoring Cappie's last comment.

"Actually yeah," said Cappie. But he didn't continue.

"Um, are you going to tell me or do I have to guess?" Casey asked with a chuckle.

"Please don't freak out," said Cappie with a sigh.

"Well something can't be good when you start off like that," said Casey becoming worried.

"Evan has decided that before he gets married he wants to take a walk on the wild side," said Cappie.

"Oh god," he heard Casey utter.

"So he has scheduled us all to go skydiving this afternoon," said Cappie preparing himself for the blow.

"He what?!" Casey exclaimed.

"I know, I know," said Cappie. "But we've already tried to talk him out of it and he's not budging."

"Well he can do whatever he wants," said Casey. "But I hope you are not thinking about it."

"Actually, I told him I would do it with him," Cappie replied softly.

"Excuse me?" said Casey pretending she didn't hear Cappie. "I think I just heard you say you were going to do it."

"Yeah," Cappie sighed.

"Cap do you realize how dangerous it is?" said Casey. "You have a family. What if something happens to you?"

"Case everything is going to fine," said Cappie. "People skydive all of the time. Plus I want to be there for Evan. He's a good friend and needs me there to be by him."

"I really don't like this," said Casey. "You know you're going to have me stressed for the rest of the day now until I hear from you."

"So you're going to let me do it?" Cappie asked.

"Cap I can't tell you what you can and can't do," said Casey. "I can tell you that I don't approve of it and I wish you wouldn't do it. But ultimately it's your decision."

"Now I know why the guys wanted me to be the one to call you guys," said Cappie with a smile.

"What is that supposed to mean?" Casey asked.

"Only that you are the greatest wife in the whole wide world," said Cappie. "And I promise I'll come back to you tonight all safe and sound."

"You better," said Casey. "And I want a call as soon as you hit the ground."

"I can do that," said Cappie. "I love you."

"I love you too," said Casey. "So I take it it's my job to tell the other two girls?"

"Yeah, if you could," said Cappie. "Evan and Beaver are chicken. And if you could keep Ash and Bex from calling them too that would be nice."

"You are totally going to owe me," said Casey.

"And what do you have in mind my love?" asked Cappie in a sexy voice.

"I'll let you know later," Casey replied.

"Alright, I guess I should get going," said Cappie. "Promise I'll call you when I'm on the ground."

"Be careful honey," said Casey in a worried tone.

"Don't worry, I'll be fine," said Cappie. "I'll talk to you later."

"Bye."

Cappie hung up the phone and made his way back into the club house.

"Well?" Evan asked as he sat down.

"Casey knows," said Cappie. "Rebecca and Ashleigh weren't around her but they'll know eventually."

"And what did she say?" Beaver asked.

"She's worried but she's OK with it," said Cappie.

"Good, hopefully she can tell the other two girls to do the same," said Evan.

"So Calvin, are you going to call Heath?" Cappie asked.

"Uh, I think I'm just going to tell him about it later," said Calvin. "Besides, he's probably too busy right now to even answer the phone."

"Wussy," said Beaver with a laugh.

"Oh I'm the wuss?" Calvin asked playfully. "You're the one who had Cappie call for you. You're not much better."

"Alright guys, no need to get into an argument," said Evan. "Let's just order some food and then make our way to the skydiving place."

The boys nodded their heads as they ordered their food and ate mostly making small talk. Beaver and Evan were both very surprised that their cell phones didn't ring soon after Cappie got off the phone with Casey. Casey must have done a good job keeping the girls calm about everything.

Two hours later the boys found themselves pulling into a small airport for their wild adventure. Evan led the way as they walked into the office and waited for their instructors to arrive. A few minutes later three men and one woman introduced themselves as their instructors and took them into a classroom to begin instruction on the skydiving process. All the boys listened intently as their hearts began to race with nervousness the more the instructors went over safety guidelines and what to do in an emergency if something goes wrong. The four instructors left the room to go get all the necessary equipment leaving the four boys in the room.

"I call dibs on the female," said Calvin once the instructors left.

"Wait, no way," said Evan. "I thought for sure you would want one of the guys. You like having guys strapped behind you."

Beaver and Cappie were doing everything they could to keep from laughing.

"Ha, ha, very funny," said Calvin. "I actually was looking out for you guys when I said I would take the female. I am the smallest guy here and would think you would feel more comfortable with someone who was more your size with your life in their hands."

"You have a point," said Beaver.

"True Calvin," said Evan. "I'm sorry."

"It's OK," said Calvin. "No hard feelings."

A few minutes later the instructors returned and helped all the boys get into their gear.

"Everyone ready?" asked the female instructor.

"Ready as we'll ever be," said Evan as they all went outside to get into the airplane.

"Shit dude, I can't believe we're doing this," said Cappie as they all got seated in the plane. "Remind me to never call you out on anything about yourself ever again."

Evan just smiled at Cappie as the plane started up. He was actually too nervous to talk at this point. What in the heck was he thinking when he did this? But he knew deep down there was no backing out now. He needed to do this and prove not only to others but to himself that he wasn't so straight and narrow. Evan Chambers had a wild side to him and he was about to show it to the world.

"Alright Evan," yelled his instructor over the loud plane. "We're up first."

His instructor tightened the straps that hooked the two of them together as they walked over to the open door on the side of the plane.

"Good luck Evan!" shouted Cappie. "We'll see you down there bro!"

Evan turned around and waved to the rest of the guys, still unable to talk because of his nerves.

"Alright, on the count of three," said the instructor. "One, two, three!"

On three the two of them flung themselves out of the plane. This was it. There was no turning back now. It was now up to the heavens above and their trained instructors that all four of them landed the ground safely and soundly.

* * *

**_A/N: Yay for a new chapter right?? It's been really weird coming home for work and not posting a chapter right away like I had been doing....lol._**

**_So I thought this chapter turned out pretty cute and it has some funny moments (I hope....haha). I'll probably get another chapter up this weekend sometime so keep checking back and as always, thanks for reading! Hope I didn't make you wait too long for a new chapter :0)_**

**_Oh and Greek got over a million viewers on Monday....if we're able to keep the number around there we should be able to get another season! So keep watching the show to keep the ratings up and spread the word!_**


	110. Jump Then Fall

JUMP THEN FALL

The three boys watched as Evan was flung out the door and out into the sky.

"It's all you next Calvin," said Beaver.

"Me? Hell no! You're up next," Calvin replied.

"Look, one of you has to go next because I know if I go next both of you are going to chicken out and not even do it," said Cappie.

Beaver and Calvin looked at each other.

"Come on Beaver," said his instructor giving Beaver no choice. "Time to go!"

Beaver slowly made his way to the open door as his instructor tightened the straps between the two of them.

"You know, I have a kid on the way," pleaded Beaver. "I probably shouldn't be doing this."

"I have twins on the way buddy," said his instructor. "So your excuse means nothing to me."

"Damn," Beaver muttered.

"One, two, three!" yelled his instructor as the two of them jumped out into the sky.

"Oh my god I feel like I'm going to have a heart attack my heart is racing so fast," said Cappie putting his hand over his heart.

"Well then let's not do it," stated Calvin. "You and I can ban together and chicken out."

Cappie thought about it for a second before taking a deep breath.

"I can't Calv," he said. "I promised Evan I would do this. I can't back out on him now."

"You're too good of a friend," Calvin replied.

"You sound like my wife," Cappie replied with a small smile.

"Alright Calvin, time to go," said his female instructor.

"Oh I was hoping Cappie could go before me, you know, save the best for last," said Calvin trying to stall the inevitable as long as possible.

"Sorry Calvin, I never jump last," said his instructor as she tightened the straps between the two of them. "It's time to fly."

Calvin and her made their way to the door and on the same count of three as everyone else they were flung out the door.

"Oh god, it's time," Cappie muttered to himself realizing he was the last one left.

"Last but not least," said his instructor as he tightened the straps between the two of them.

"I'm not sure I want to do this anymore," said Cappie as his heart began to race faster and faster.

"This is not the time to chicken out now," said his instructor. "I have had others chicken out at this point and have regretted it as soon as the plane landed back on the ground. Don't be one of those people. Your other three friends did it, now it's your turn."

"You sure everything is going to be OK?" Cappie asked.

"It will be fine," his instructor replied. "You're going to have the time of your life. I promise."

Cappie nodded his head as the two of them went to the open door.

"One, two, three!" his instructor yelled as the two of them jumped out of the plane and began to soar towards the ground.

At first the wind hurt as it pressed against his face but Cappie eventually got used to that and was able to open his eyes and look at his surroundings. At first everything was mostly white from the clouds but as they got through the clouds he began to see the earth below him and it was truly a beautiful sight.

"Alright, I'm opening the parachute now," he heard his instructor yell into his ear after a couple minutes of free falling.

Even though he knew it was happening the jolting of the parachute surprised Cappie. But his fears were eased slightly as he felt the parachute slow them down. It was at that moment that he knew things were going to be OK. He allowed himself to take in the surroundings more and the rest of the fall to the ground was quite peaceful and inspiring. He was actually glad that he did it. Probably something he'll never do again, but at least he could tell his children that he did do it.

Cappie braced himself as the ground came closer and closer to him. It was an open field and he could see a few other parachutes from his friends who had gone just before him.

"OK, like we taught you," said his instructor in his ear. "Bring your feet to the ground and start a running motion with them until we come to a stop."

Cappie did just as the instructor told him and while the landing wasn't the smoothest, he still managed to keep upright and come to a complete stop.

"You're right dude," said Cappie as his instructor began to unhook them. "I would have regretted it if I didn't do it."

"I told you," his instructor replied. "It's a pretty incredible experience."

"Tell me about it," Cappie replied.

It was then his hand brushed against the cell phone in his pocket.

"Excuse me for just a second," he said. "I have to call my wife and let her know I'm OK."

"That's fine," his instructor replied. "Just meet us in the office when you're done."

Cappie nodded as he called Casey's cell phone.

"Cappie?" she answered the phone.

"Yes dear, it's me," Cappie replied. "And I'm safely on the ground talking to you."

"Oh thank god," Casey sighed. "Is everyone else OK?"

"I would assume so," Cappie looked around the field. "I think all of them went into the office already."

"So how was it?" she asked.

"Incredible," Cappie replied. "The first part where I was just falling without the parachute was pretty crazy. I thought my heart was going to explode out of my chest. But once my instructor opened the parachute everything was so calming as we just soared to the ground."

"Well I'm so relieved that you're OK," said Casey.

"What are you guys up to now?" Cappie asked.

"We're just finishing up here at the salon," said Casey. "We're probably going to go and grab some dinner before heading back to the hotel."

"And how did Ashleigh and Rebecca take the news?" Cappie asked.

"Uh," Casey uttered. "I haven't really told them yet."

"Are you kidding me?" Cappie asked.

"Well I thought it would be easier to tell them once all of you had made it safely to the ground," said Casey. "That way they didn't freak out."

"I hope they don't hate you for doing that," said Cappie.

"Everything will be fine," Casey replied. "But I'm sure Beave and Evan are going to get some phone calls when I tell them."

"I'll give them a heads up," said Cappie with a small laugh.

"I'm really glad you're OK Cap," said Casey. "I can't wait to see you tonight."

"I can't wait either," Cappie replied. "I love you."

"I love you too," Casey replied.

The two of them said goodbye and hung up the phone. Cappie took one last look at his surroundings before he headed to the office. He still couldn't believe he had just gone skydiving.

When Cappie entered the office his heart quickly sank to the ground as he saw everyone standing around Beaver on one of the benches.

"What is going on?" Cappie asked as he went up to them.

"Beaver twisted his ankle as they landed," said Evan. "We're probably going to have to take him to the hospital to get it checked out."

"It's not a big deal guys," said Beaver. "I've twisted this ankle hundreds of times before when I played football. The swelling will go down in a couple of hours and everything will be OK."

"Beave, your foot does not look OK," said Calvin as he picked the ice bag off of it to show Cappie.

Not only was his foot swollen to the size of a football but it was pretty black and blue from bruising.

"Plus we all had to carry your ass in here," said Evan. "You can't put any of your weight on that leg."

"Of course something like this just had to happen," said Cappie as he sank into a chair next to Beaver.

"Cap, it's fine," said Beaver. "I was just an idiot and forgot to run my feet when we landed like we were taught. We are all here alive and safely on the ground. A little sprained ankle is nothing compared to what could have happened to any of us."

"I guess you're right," said Cappie with a sigh. "I do have some bad news though."

"What?" Evan asked.

"Casey didn't tell Ash and Bex that we went skydiving," said Cappie. "She was going to wait until she heard all of us were safely on the ground."

Just then Evan's phone rang.

"Hello," he answered it slowly.

"EVAN! WHAT IN THE HELL WERE YOU THINKING?!?! SKYDIVING?!" Everyone could hear Rebecca's screams on the other end of the phone.

"Everything is fine Rebecca," said Evan. "We're all on the ground safely."

"I can't believe you would do such a thing just days before our wedding!" exclaimed Rebecca, calming down just a little bit.

"It was just something I had to do," said Evan. "I'm sorry."

Rebecca sighed. "At least you're OK I guess."

Evan walked off to talk some more to Rebecca as Beaver's phone rang.

"Here we go," Cappie muttered as Beaver answered.

"Hey babe," Beaver answered the phone.

"Don't hey babe me," said Ashleigh. "You are absolutely insane for going skydiving when you have a child on the way. What on earth was I supposed to do if something happened to you?"

"Ash, please don't freak out," said Beaver. "Everyone is alive and I only twisted my ankle."

"You what?" Ashleigh asked.

"When I landed my ankle twisted," said Beaver. "The guys are going to take me to get it checked out but everything is fine."

"I can't believe this is happening," said Ashleigh. "Why didn't you tell me before you did it?"

"Casey was supposed to tell you," said Beaver. "But she decided not to."

"Yeah but why didn't you call and tell me? I wish you would have called," she said.

"I have no excuse Ash," said Beaver. "I'm sorry. I just didn't want you to worry."

"Well now I'm worried about your ankle," she said. "I hope everything is OK."

"It's fine," said Beaver. "I've done this many times before. After a day or two of rest and ice it should be OK."

"Alright," Ashleigh sighed. "I guess I'll see you later tonight."

"You sure will," Beaver replied. "And please don't worry too much. Everything is fine and I love you OK?"

"Love you too," Ashleigh replied.

"I'll see you later. Bye," said Beaver.

"Bye."

"Well, she's pretty pissed," said Beaver as he hung up the phone. "Remind me to thank Casey for not telling her what was going on."

"Hey, don't blame Casey for this," said Cappie defending his wife. "She was just trying to protect Ash and Bex from worrying all afternoon."

"Finally got Rebecca calmed down," said Evan as he joined the boys.

"Hey on the bright side it's good to know that your girls care about your guys," said Calvin. "They all just really wanted to make sure you guys were OK."

"Yeah, you're right bro," said Beaver. "I'm sorry I blamed Casey Cap."

"It's alright," said Cappie. "I think right now we need to just focus on getting your ankle looked at."

Beaver sat up on the bench and was able to stand on his good leg. But as soon as he tried to take a step with his left foot he almost went crashing to the ground.

"Wow does that hurt," he said bracing himself on Cappie who was standing next to him.

Evan got on his other side and the two of them helped Beaver out to the car. Cappie found the nearest hospital on his GPS and they all made their way there.

Once at the hospital they quickly took Beaver back to get x-rays as the rest of the boys waited in the waiting room.

"So I never got to ask," said Cappie. "What did you guys think of the skydive?"

"It was actually pretty amazing once the parachute opened," said Evan.

"Yeah, the first part with the free falling was not very exciting," said Calvin. "But I guess ultimately I enjoyed it and glad I was able to experience it with you guys."

"Yeah, you had a pretty good idea Ev," said Cappie. "But I don't think we're going to be doing anything like that anytime soon."

"Probably not," said Evan with a small laugh. "Wild and crazy Evan has been tucked away for a much later time in the future."

"I think that's a good thing," said Calvin.

After about a half an hour Cappie made his way back to the exam room to see how everything was going with Beaver.

"Nice gown," said Cappie laughing as he entered the room and saw Beaver in one of the typical hospital gowns.

"Not funny," said Beaver as he pulled the gown down as far as he could.

"So what did they say?" Cappie asked as he sat in a chair next to Beaver's bed.

"I broke it," said Beaver.

"Oh wow," said Cappie. "I thought you said you just twisted it."

"Well the x-rays told a different story I guess," said Beaver.

"So what happens now?" Cappie asked.

"The doctor is consulting with another physician to see if I need surgery or if they can just put it in a cast to heal it."

"I really hope you don't need surgery," said Cappie.

"I hope so too," Beaver replied. "I get to go home if all they do is put it in a cast. If I need surgery I have to stay in the hospital."

Cappie just sighed as he sank back into his chair. The boys waited for several minutes until the doctor came into the room with Beaver's x-rays.

"Good news," he said putting the x-rays up on the light. "You're not going to need surgery."

"Oh thank god," said Beaver with a sigh of relief.

"We're going to get you in a nice cast and send you on your way," said the doctor as he took one last look at the x-rays.

"I'm going to head back out to the waiting room while they do that," said Cappie. "I'll see you out there when you're done."

"OK, thanks man," said Beaver as Cappie left.

Cappie filled Evan and Calvin in as to what was going on with Beaver as the boys waited for Beaver to finish. About a half an hour later Beaver came hopping out on a pair of crutches.

"Thank god he's not one of my groomsmen," said Evan as he saw Beaver hop towards them.

All three boys began to laugh as they gazed towards Beaver's ankle.

"Why in the hell did you choose a pink cast?" Cappie asked.

"I thought it fit my personality," said Beaver with a laugh. "Plus all the bridesmaids will be wearing pink for Evan's wedding. I thought I would fit in with the colors."

"You're something else," said Evan as he shook his head.

All the boys piled back into the Jeep and soon arrived back at the hotel. It was well past dark as they all reflected on the crazy day that had had.

Evan got into his car and drove back to his apartment while Cappie, Calvin and Beaver all went to their respective hotel rooms.

Ashleigh gasped as soon as she saw Beaver walk into the room.

"I thought you just twisted your ankle?" she asked.

"Apparently I broke it," said Beaver as he sat next to her on the bed.

"Aw, does it hurt?" she asked.

"I took some pain medicine at the hospital so it feels OK right now," said Beaver.

"And why in the world do you have a pink cast?" she asked with a small laugh.

"I wanted to match you at the wedding," said Beaver turning to her and smiling.

Ashleigh leaned in and kissed him softly.

"I'm sorry for everything today," said Beaver as he backed away. "I should have called and told you everything that was going on. I just didn't want you to worry with being pregnant and all."

"Thanks for looking out for me," said Ashleigh. "Let's not do it again though OK?"

"Fine with me," Beaver replied with a smile.

Beaver then reached into his back pocket and pulled out a black marker.

"Want to be the first one to sign my cast?" he asked handing her the pen.

Ashleigh laughed as Beaver brought his leg up on the bed so she could write on his cast. Beaver looked down and read what she wrote after she was finished.

"Get well real soon. Love, Ashleigh and Little Beaver," Beaver read it out loud.

He leaned over and gave Ashleigh another soft kiss.

"I love you and little Beaver very much," said Beaver as he leaned in and kissed her again.

Meanwhile, Cappie made his way to the room down the hall, excited to see Casey after such a long day. As soon as he walked into the room Casey came running up to him and wrapped her arms tightly around his neck. Cappie sighed softly into her ear as he wrapped his hands around her waist just as tightly.

"I don't think I have ever been happier to see you," said Casey.

"I couldn't agree more," Cappie whispered in her ear.

After several minutes of just holding each other Casey finally backed away and kissed Cappie softly.

"Everything OK?" Cappie asked.

"Yeah, everything is fine now that you're here and safely on the ground," said Casey. "Even though I knew you were OK I just had to see you with my own eyes to make sure it was actually true."

"It's certainly been a crazy day," said Cappie as he sat on the edge of the bed. "I have never once thought about going skydiving."

"I can't believe Evan would even suggest such a thing," said Casey sitting next to him. "It doesn't seem very much like him."

"It's not," Cappie agreed. "But I think deep down he's still a little jealous of me."

"You think?" Casey asked.

"I'm pretty sure," Cappie replied. "He made the comment about how he thought I had rubbed off on him more. I guess once he lost his house and his trust fund, I was all he really had to lean on."

"That's true," said Casey. "But at the same time Evan will never be able to be you. You're so much more carefree and the life of the party. He'll never be anything like that."

"Skydiving I guess was his way to try and be like me," said Cappie. "Someone who is spontaneous and wild."

"I don't think you're like that too much anymore though," said Casey. "You've really stepped up and become more mature once Cadence was born."

"You just have to realize the priorities in your life," said Cappie as he put his arm around Casey. "And I think once Evan marries Rebecca on Saturday he'll realize too that being so spontaneous and wild isn't really who he is."

"Certainly," Casey agreed as she leaned her head against Cappie's shoulder. "I'm excited for the wedding. I think it will be a good time."

"It will," Cappie replied. "But I'm sad because it will probably be the last time I'll be walking down the aisle with my beautiful wife."

"You never know," said Casey. "We may get to if there is a Rusty and Jordan wedding in the future."

"That's true," said Cappie with a smile.

Cappie laid back on the bed and pulled Casey close to him.

"I have to admit I'm more excited for next week though," he said. "I want that confirmation that everything is going to be OK with Cappie junior more than anything."

"Me too," said Casey as she looked up and kissed him on the cheek.

Cappie rubbed his hand up and down Casey's back as the two of them laid there in silence. Each of them was thinking about the baby and the future that lies ahead for them. Only one more week until they would know for sure if the baby was OK. Making it through this next week was going to be the biggest challenge for both of them.

* * *

**_A/N: So Fanfiction was being a pain in my butt and wouldn't let me upload this chapter for the longest time for some reason. Anyway, it's loaded now :0) Hope you guys liked it. I'm pretty sure I'm going to get another chapter loaded tomorrow for you too...yay right?!? In the next chapter Cadence comes to town and the rehearsal dinner for the wedding is here._**


	111. Fight the Battle

FIGHT THE BATTLE

Friday morning Cappie, Casey, Ashleigh and Beaver met in the hotel restaurant for their usual breakfast.

"I hardly slept at all last night," said Beaver in a groggy voice. "My ankle was killing me."

"Did you try putting it up on a pillow or something?" Casey asked.

"Yeah, that didn't help," said Beaver. "I even took two pain meds hoping those would put me to sleep but no luck with that either."

"I'm sorry Beave," said Cappie. "I hope it starts to get better for you."

"You seem rather peppy this morning Case," said Ashleigh. "No morning sickness?"

"I can't be that lucky," said Casey with a small laugh. "But I have to admit this is the first morning I've felt well in a long time. I got sick a few times this morning but I feel fine right now."

"I really hope it's starting to go away then," said Ashleigh.

"Me too," Casey replied.

"Ash I want more eggs," Beaver pouted as he turned to look at her.

"Of course you do," said Ashleigh as she got up to go get Beaver more eggs.

"Having a broken ankle definitely has its advantages," Beaver whispered with a smile as Ashleigh left the table.

"Now don't be too hard on her," said Casey. "She is pregnant you know."

"I know," Beaver replied leaning back in his chair.

The four of them finished up breakfast and were sitting at the table talking when Rusty and Cadence came in.

"Ma-ma! Da-da!" yelled Cadence as she came running up to Cappie and Casey.

Cappie stood and picked up Cadence to give her a great big hug.

"Hi my little lady," he said kissing her cheek. "Daddy missed you."

"Missed you too da-da," said Cadence as she laid a very sloppy kiss on Cappie's cheek.

Cappie handed Cadence to Casey as he wiped the slobber off of his face.

"Did you have a good car ride with Uncle Rusty?" Casey asked.

"Yeah, we sing songs," Cadence replied with a smile.

"And what kind of songs might these be?" Cappie asked turning to Rusty.

"Don't worry, nothing bad," said Rusty. "I bought a children's songs CD before we left. It was mostly 'twinkle little star' and 'row your boat' songs."

"OK, I can deal with that," said Cappie as he sat back down in his chair.

Cadence climbed off Casey's lap and went over to Beaver.

"You got boo boo," she said pointing to his cast.

"Yes I do," said Beaver. "But I bet if you gave it a kiss you would make it feel all better."

Everyone watched as Cadence bent down and kissed Beaver's cast.

"All bedder!" she exclaimed after she was finished.

"Thank you Cadence," said Beaver as he picked her up and put her in his lap.

"So are you meeting up with Jordan Russ?" Casey asked.

"Yeah, I'm going to go pick her up so we can get some lunch together," said Rusty as he set Cadence's bags down next to the table.

"Well don't eat too much," said Cappie. "I heard this rehearsal dinner tonight is going to be pretty over the top with plenty of food."

"OK, I won't," said Rusty with a small laugh. "I'll see you guys there."

"Bye Russ," said Beaver as Rusty made his way out of the hotel.

"Cadence, are you ready to be a flower girl again?" Ashleigh asked.

Cadence just shook her head yes as she played with one of the buttons on Beaver's shirt.

"Well hopefully for Rebecca's sake she'll do better than she did in your wedding," said Casey.

"I didn't mind," said Ashleigh as she brushed Cadence on the cheek. "She was too cute with the way that she did it anyway."

Cadence laid her head down on Beaver's chest and snuggled right in.

"Is Beaver comfortable?" Ashleigh asked her.

"He soft," said Cadence shaking her head yes.

They all watched as Cadence put her thumb in her mouth and shut her eyes. Within minutes she was sleeping nestled into Beaver's chest.

"Hmmm, I think I might have a new love interest here," said Beaver jokingly.

Ashleigh rolled her eyes as she turned to Casey. "Have you thought about how you're going to tell Cadence about the new baby?"

"Not really," said Casey looking at Cappie. "It's probably going to be hard for her to understand at first."

"We probably won't say anything until Casey's belly starts to grow," said Cappie. "That way she will be able to visualize kind of what is going on."

"That's true," Ashleigh replied.

Cappie's cell phone rang.

"Hey Ev," he said answering the phone.

"Hey Cap, how is everyone?" Evan asked.

"We're good," Cappie replied. "Cadence just got here."

"That's great," said Evan.

There was an awkward silence on the phone.

"Something wrong Ev?" Cappie finally asked.

Evan took a deep breath.

"I have to meet with my parents in a little bit," he said. "They want to have a discussion."

"Maybe they just want to apologize for their actions," said Cappie trying to cheer Evan up. "They could surprise you Ev."

"I doubt it," said Evan.

"What does Rebecca think of the meeting?" Cappie asked.

"She's just about as nervous as I am," said Evan.

"Evan, there is no reason for either of you to be nervous," said Cappie. "The worst your parents can do is not come to the wedding. They aren't going to stop the two of you from getting married."

"I know," Evan replied. "I can't say I wouldn't be bummed if my parents weren't there though."

"Even if they're not," said Cappie. "You are going to have a lot of people who love and care about you to take their place. I'll even do the mother and son dance with you if you want."

"Uh, I think I'll pass on that one," said Evan with a laugh. "I may have to steal your wife for that one though."

"As long as you keep your hands to yourself," said Cappie jokingly.

"Always," Evan replied continuing to laugh.

"But seriously dude, don't get all stressed about it," said Cappie. "Call me if you need anything OK?"

"Alright, thanks Cap," said Evan.

"Anytime," Cappie replied. "I'll catch you later."

"Bye."

Evan hung up the phone with Cappie and turned to Rebecca.

"Should we get going or stall a little bit more?" he asked.

"I like the idea of stalling much better," said Rebecca as she wrapped her arms around Evans neck and began kissing him softly.

"Me too," said Evan as he pulled away. "But I think it's time we just get this over with."

"Yeah, you're right," said Rebecca with a sigh as she let go of him and grabbed her purse.

The two of them drove to Evan's parent's home mostly in silence. The butler let them in and they were escorted into the study where both of his parents were waiting for them.

"Hello," said Evan as he and Rebecca sat on the couch opposite of his parents.

"Evan, what is this?" his mom said as she slammed a sheet of paper down on the coffee table between them.

Evan picked it up and looked at the headline: 'Evan Chambers risks it all and goes skydiving.' And there was a nice picture of him and his friends in their sky diving outfits next to the story.

"I have no idea how this story got out," said Evan setting the paper back down on the table.

"Is it true?" Mr. Chambers asked.

"Yes, me and a few buddies went skydiving the other day," said Evan. "It was a great experience for all of us."

"You could have died Evan! Why are the two of you just going off the wall the week before your wedding?" Mrs. Chambers asked. "First you disappear Rebecca and now Evan you go skydiving? My publicist is going crazy with phone calls."

"Why can't a guy have a little fun with his friends?" Evan asked. "It could have been worse. We could have had a bachelor party with pictures with strippers and sluts around us. How would you have liked that one?"

"Evan, all we're asking is for you to cool it down a little bit," said Mr. Chambers. "We love you and only want you to be safe."

"I was fine mom and dad," said Evan. "I had some of my best friends with me and we had a great time. I don't understand how any of this can generate bad press. It was just a few guys going out and having a little walk on the wild side."

"People are looking at this and thinking you two are not ready to get married," said Mrs. Chambers. "That's the issue with everything."

"Do you really care that much what other people think?" Rebecca piped in.

Mr. and Mrs. Chambers looked shocked at Rebecca's remark.

"Shouldn't all that matters is how Evan and I feel towards each other?" Rebecca continued. "Anyone who goes to the wedding tomorrow will see how in love and ready we are to spend the rest of our lives together. I don't understand why you guys are so concerned with what has happened up until now."

Evan reached over and grabbed Rebecca's hand and squeezed it tightly.

"So the wedding is still on tomorrow?" Mrs. Chambers asked.

"Yes mom, Rebecca and I are still getting married," said Evan. "No one is going to stop us."

"Well I hope everything goes well for you two," said Mrs. Chambers.

"So is that your way of basically telling us you're not going to be at the wedding tomorrow?" Evan asked.

Mr. and Mrs. Chambers looked at each other.

"Look Evan," said Mr. Chambers. "I know the two of us have been hard on you and Rebecca lately. We've been caught up with the press of the wedding that we have lost sight of what the wedding is actually about. Of course we're going to be there."

"Are you're going to support us?" Rebecca asked.

"Of course we will," said Mrs. Chambers. "You're our son Evan and we wouldn't miss tomorrow for the world. We're sorry that everything got messed up and you thought we didn't support the two of you."

"Well how were we supposed to think when you basically told us to go elope the last time we met?" Evan asked.

"Very true," Mrs. Chambers replied. "We don't blame you for being upset with us. If you don't want us at the wedding, we understand that too."

Evan stood up and walked over towards his mom. He reached his arms out and his mom stood and gave him a hug.

"Of course I want you guys there," said Evan. "I hope we can put all this crap behind us and have a great night tonight and a great day tomorrow. That's all I really want."

"And I'm going to do everything I can to make sure you have that great time," said his mom backing away and giving him a kiss on the cheek.

Evan shook his dad's hand as Mrs. Chambers walked over and sat next to Rebecca.

"You are really a great girl for my son Rebecca," she said. "I want to personally apologize for the things I said the other day. You had every right to get cold feet before the wedding and I have no doubt anymore that you will do just fine with the Chambers name."

"Thanks," said Rebecca with a smile as she gave Mrs. Chambers a hug.

"Why don't we all go into the dining room and I'll have the cook make us a nice lunch?" said Mrs. Chambers.

"That sounds good," said Evan. "Rebecca and I will meet you in there in a second."

Mr. and Mrs. Chambers left the room as Evan went back over and sat next to Rebecca.

"That was quite the turn around," said Rebecca.

"Yeah, I half believe them," said Evan rolling his eyes.

"You really think that was all just an act?" Rebecca asked.

"I don't know," said Evan. "And frankly I really don't care. I'm just glad that they are going to be there tomorrow."

"Me too," said Rebecca. "It really wouldn't be right if they weren't there."

"I love you Bex," said Evan looking straight into her eyes.

"I love you too," said Rebecca as she leaned forward and gave Evan a soft kiss.

"Shall we go get some lunch?" Evan asked as he stood up.

"You lead the way," said Rebecca as she followed Evan out of the study.

* * *

After a quick rehearsal at the church everyone sat in the Madison Room at Bexley Monk restaurant for a lavish, multi-course dinner. Everyone in the wedding party was present along with both Evan and Rebecca's parents for the occasion. Everyone was having side conversations until Patrick, Evan's brother, stood up and got everyone's attention.

"Before dinner arrives," he stated. "I would like to show everyone something I made for the happy couple. It took many hours and a lot of scanning but I hope you two enjoy it."

The lights dimmed and soon a baby picture of Evan and a baby picture of Rebecca were projected on the wall in the room. Everyone in the room gave awes as the slideshow began to play showing several pictures of Evan and Rebecca as children. Cappie was actually in a couple of the pictures from the camp him and Evan used to go to.

"You were a pretty cute kid," Casey whispered to Cappie. "Now I know where Cadence gets it."

Cappie smiled at her as he turned back to the slideshow. After childhood pictures, the slideshow began to show pictures of the college years. There were several of Rebecca and Evan kissing and at parties. There were also several pictures of them at Cappie and Casey's wedding as well as Ashleigh and Beaver's wedding.

"That was really awesome Patrick," said Evan standing and giving his brother a hug.

"Thanks bro," said Patrick hugging him back.

Everyone began their side conversations again as Patrick came up to Cappie.

"Cappie!" he said. "I haven't seen you in such a long time!"

"I know!" said Cappie standing and giving Patrick a hug. "It was probably when you visited CRU my junior year the last time I saw you."

"I think that's about right," said Patrick pulling up a chair next to Cappie. "So what is going on with you?"

"Oh just growing up and living life," said Cappie. "Have you met my wife Casey?"

"Casey? The same Casey Evan dated for a couple of years?" Patrick asked.

"Yeah, that's me," said Casey shaking his hand.

"Is this why you and Ev had that falling out?" Patrick asked.

"Something like that," Cappie stated not wanting to get into the details.

"Well it's good to see you two are good again," said Patrick.

"Da-da!" said Cadence climbing onto Cappie's lap.

"What? You have a kid?" Patrick asked in shock.

"Yup, Patrick this is Cadence," Cappie replied. "Cadence say hi to Patrick."

"Hi!" said Cadence reaching out and giving Patrick a high five.

"Talk about crazy turns of events," said Patrick. "I never thought you would be the one married with a kid before any of us."

"Well, strange things happen I guess," said Cappie as he bent down and gave Cadence a kiss on the cheek.

Just then the staff began bringing dinner out and everyone took their seats to eat.

"Before we eat I would like to make a quick toast," said Senator Logan as he stood up. "I just want to say how happy I am for Rebecca and Evan and excited for the events for tomorrow. I think I can speak for everyone here when I say that we are behind you two one hundred percent and wish you nothing but happiness for the rest of your lives. To Evan and Rebecca!"

Everyone clanked their glasses together and began to eat dinner. After dinner Ashleigh and Casey pulled Rebecca aside and gave her a book.

"What is this?" Rebecca asked.

"This is something Ash and I put together for you," said Casey. "It's a scrapbook of our friendship with little tips throughout on how to be a good wife."

Rebecca opened it and began going through the pages with pictures of all of them from college and afterwards.

"Always say I love you before going to bed," she read one of the quotes the girls had written.

"Casey came up with that one," said Ashleigh.

"Aw you guys this is beautiful," said Rebecca. "And it will give me something to read tonight while I'm alone in the hotel room."

"It's not that bad," said Casey. "It's actually falling asleep that's the hard part because you're so anxious for tomorrow to come."

"I love you guys," said Rebecca giving them a hug.

"We love you too," said Ashleigh.

The three girls rejoined the party. Everyone mingled for the next hour before people started to call it a night and head home. Cadence was beginning to get tired so Cappie and Casey left to go back to the hotel first. Ashleigh and Beaver stayed behind as they were taking Rebecca back to the hotel with them to spend the night. When it was just the four of them left Ashleigh and Beaver excused themselves to wait in the car as Rebecca and Evan said goodbye to each other.

"It's going to be pretty lonely tonight," said Rebecca as she took Evan's hand and they began to walk out of the restaurant.

"Yeah but we'll be together soon enough," said Evan. "I can't believe that tomorrow is finally almost here. It seems like I've been waiting forever with all the planning and everything we've done."

"I just hope everything goes as planned," said Rebecca with a sigh.

"Everything is going to be fine," said Evan. "You just worry about yourself and let me worry about everything else. I know you are going to be the most beautiful bride ever."

"Thanks Ev, said Rebecca. "You'll probably look quite handsome yourself."

"Well this is it," said Evan as they reached his car.

"Are we allowed to talk on the phone tomorrow?" Rebecca asked.

"I'm not sure," Evan replied. "But you can text me if you want."

"So you're ready for tomorrow right?" Rebecca asked.

Evan let go of Rebecca's hand and put his arms around her waist.

"I am more than ready," he replied. "I can't wait for you to become my wife."

"I love you," said Rebecca with a smile.

"I love you too," said Evan as he leaned in and gave Rebecca a romantic and passionate kiss.

"I will see you at the altar tomorrow," said Rebecca as she backed away and began walking towards Beaver and Ashleigh's rental car.

"That's if I'm there," said Evan jokingly.

Rebecca turned around and put her hands on her hips.

"Of course I'll be there," said Evan reading her body language. "I'll see you later."

Evan stood there and watched Rebecca get into the car and drive off with Beaver and Ashleigh. He then got into his car and sat there for a bit before turning it on. After everything that has happened this week it was hard to believe that he finally made it to this day. Tomorrow he will meet Rebecca at the altar and she will become Mrs. Evan Chambers. With all the craziness the two of them have had with their relationship they deserve to have a smooth, stress free day tomorrow. But as Evan started the car he couldn't help but think that tomorrow was going to be anything but that.

* * *

_**A/N: Hehe....such a nice ending huh? The next chapter starts the wedding for those of you anxiously waiting. And of course tomorrow is a new episode of GREEK so make sure to watch it if you're in the US so we can continue to keep the ratings up! I have been getting a lot more favorite story and story alerts which is cool but I only got two reviews with the last chapter :0( Please take a second just to let me know what you think....I would really appreciate it! :0) Thanks for reading!**_


	112. Mishaps

MISHAPS

The next morning Cappie woke up and turned on his side. His natural instinct was to reach for Casey and pull her close to him. But this morning there was an obstacle in his way. Cadence had decided she didn't want to sleep in her portable crib. Usually Cappie and Casey don't allow her to sleep with them but since they hadn't seen her for a while they felt it was a special occasion for her to join them in the bed. Cappie looked at Cadence sleeping so peacefully. He brushed a few strands of her hair out of her face as she let out a small sigh. Cappie then looked over at Casey. He was surprised she wasn't in the bathroom with morning sickness this morning. Maybe things were really starting to get better for her. A few minutes later Casey began to stir and turned on her side and looked at her husband and child.

"I forgot we had a little obstacle from cuddling this morning," she whispered to Cappie.

Cappie smiled. "How are you feeling this morning?"

"A little nauseous," said Casey. "But for right now I'm doing OK. I don't need to run to the bathroom or anything."

"That's good," said Cappie as he turned his gaze back down to Cadence.

"She certainly does look angelic while she sleeps," whispered Casey.

"Seeing her like this makes me want to protect her even more for the rest of her life," said Cappie.

"You'll protect her like the amazing father that you are," said Casey. "She's so lucky to have you."

Cadence then reached her arms up in the air to stretch them before opening her eyes and looking at her parents.

"Hi ma-ma and da-da," she said in a soft voice.

"Good morning sweetheart," said Casey. "Did you sleep well?"

"Yeah," Cadence replied shaking her head.

"Well that's good because you have a big day ahead of you," said Cappie. "It's time for you to be a flower girl again."

"Petty dress?" Cadence asked.

"Yes, you get to wear another pretty dress," said Cappie with a smile.

"Uh oh, I'll be right back," said Casey as she ran for the bathroom and shut the door.

"Ma-ma," said Cadence.

"Mommy's OK," said Cappie. "She just has to go potty."

Cadence seemed satisfied with Cappie's answer as she sat up in the bed. Cappie was about to pull her into his lap when there was a frantic knock at the door.

"You stay here on the bed," he said. "Daddy will be right back."

Cappie quickly put a t-shirt on and answered the door.

"Rebecca?" he said. "Everything alright?"

"Where's Casey?" Rebecca said as she barged into the room.

"She's in the bathroom right now," said Cappie following Rebecca into the room. "Is there something wrong?"

"Hi Cadence," said Rebecca ignoring Cappie's question. "Are you excited for today?"

"Yup!" said Cadence. "I wear petty dress."

"You sure do," said Rebecca. "And I get to wear one too."

"Yay!" said Cadence as she clapped her hands together.

"Casey's having a bit of morning sickness," said Cappie. "So I'm not quite sure when she'll be out of the bathroom."

"That's OK, I'll wait," said Rebecca sitting on the edge of the bed.

A few minutes later Casey walked out of the bathroom.

"Bex? What are you doing here?" she asked.

"I'm having a crisis Case," said Rebecca as Casey sat next to her on the bed.

"What's going on?"

"I just got a call from Megan, one of my friends and bridesmaid from high school," Rebecca began. "Well she just got word that her grandma was rushed to the hospital. And now she's going there instead of being in the wedding so I'm now down one bridesmaid!"

Casey could see the tears swell up in Rebecca's eyes.

"It's OK Bex, we'll figure something out," said Casey as she put her arm around her. "Are there any other girls coming to the wedding who could stand in for her?"

"Not that I know of," said Rebecca.

"Do any of Evan's groomsmen have a girlfriend or someone who could stand in?" Casey asked.

Rebecca thought about it for a second but shook her head no. "All their girlfriends are bitches. I don't want them in my wedding."

Cappie shot Rebecca a disapproving look. "Can we watch the language please? There is a little child in the room."

"Oh, I'm sorry," said Rebecca realizing her slip of the tongue.

Casey let out a sigh. She was trying everything she could to come up with a solution for Rebecca but was having no luck.

"What am I going to do?" Rebecca asked. "Now there is going to be a groomsman with no one to walk with and then the people standing at the altar will look uneven and then what am I going to do about the bridal party dance and—"

"Whoa, hold up Rebecca," Cappie interrupted. "You are making this a much bigger deal than it needs to be. So what if things are a little uneven? People are probably not even going to notice."

Rebecca glared at Cappie. "Shouldn't you be with Evan doing something?"

"Cap has a good point Bex," said Casey again trying to calm her down. "I know, why don't we have one of the bridesmaids walk down the aisle with two groomsmen? I think that would look just fine."

Rebecca stared at Casey for a minute while she processed in her head how Casey's idea would work. Finally she gave a defeated sigh.

"I guess that sounds like a good solution," she said. "It might look a little weird but it's better than having the groomsman walk down the aisle alone."

"Well crisis solved then," said Casey with a smile. "Now no more stressing, this is supposed to be a happy day."

"Hopefully this is the worst of what could happen today," said Rebecca.

"I'm sure it is," said Casey as she turned to look at the clock. "But you really need to head over to the salon to get your hair started. I'll get Ashleigh and we'll meet you over there."

"OK, thanks Case," said Rebecca giving her a hug. "I don't know what I would do without you."

"You're welcome," said Casey returning the hug. "I'll see you in a little bit."

"Bye," said Rebecca as she left the room.

"Well isn't she just a bundle of sunshine today?" Cappie asked as the door shut.

"She's just stressed Cap," said Casey. "And we all know Rebecca doesn't handle stress very well so we're just going to have to do what we can for her today."

"I guess," said Cappie. "She just doesn't need to be such a bitch about it."

"Bich!" exclaimed Cadence.

Cappie and Casey exchanged worried looks.

"No, no, we don't say that word Cadence," said Casey.

"Why not?" Cadence asked.

"Because that is a bad word," Casey replied.

"Da-da said it," said Cadence pointing to Cappie.

"Yes, but daddy is very sorry that he said it and he promises he's never going to say it again," said Casey giving Cappie a look to reiterate her point.

"Oh yeah," said Cappie as he sat next to Cadence on the bed. "Daddy was real bad for saying that. Bad daddy." Cappie softly slapped himself on the back of the hand a couple of times.

Cadence slid off the side of the bed and began playing with some of her toys on the ground like nothing had just happened.

"Nice slip there dad," said Casey smiling at Cappie.

"And I'm the one who scolded Rebecca for it, imagine that," said Cappie smiling back at Casey.

"Hopefully it went in one ear and out the other," said Casey as she softly kissed Cappie. "I'm going to take a shower."

"OK," said Cappie as he sat on the floor and began to play with Cadence.

* * *

About an hour later the girls were off to the salon and Cappie made his way over to Evan's apartment.

"Hey man," said Evan as he answered the door.

"Am I the first one here?" Cappie asked.

"Yeah, the rest should be here in about an hour," said Evan. "All the tuxes were just delivered."

Cappie saw the several garment bags hanging in the closet and searched through them just to make sure his name was on one of them.

"So did Rebecca tell you about the bridesmaid fiasco she was having this morning?" Cappie asked.

"Yeah, she texted me," said Evan as he grabbed a couple beers out of the refrigerator. "She's not sure if she should talk to me on the phone or not so we've just been texting."

"Oh modern technology," said Cappie as Evan handed him a beer.

"Yeah but it sucks trying to type back to her a paragraph that it would be easier for me to just say to her," said Evan.

"Women and their silly rules," said Cappie as he took a seat in the living room. "So how are you feeling this morning? Nervous yet?"

"I wasn't at first," said Evan taking a drink of his beer. "But when Rebecca texted me about the bridesmaid thing I began to get a little nervous. All I want is for things to just fall into place today."

"I'm sure everything will be fine," said Cappie. "That girl couldn't predict her grandma would be rushed to the hospital. It's just something that happened."

"Hopefully the only thing for Rebecca's sake," said Evan with a small laugh.

"So it was good seeing Patrick again last night," said Cappie. "And it didn't seem like things were too weird between him and your parents."

"They are still not talking really," said Evan. "But it looks like they were able to put things aside for the wedding at least."

"And how about you and him?" Cappie asked. "I know you felt like you had to ask him to be your best man because he's your brother but are things better between you two?"

"Yeah, they're really good actually," said Evan. "It took a little while after I gave up my trust fund for the two of us to be OK again but he's cool."

"I just think it's weird how Patrick gave up his trust fund and your parents don't speak to him anymore but they still talk to you even though you did the same thing," said Cappie.

"It probably has a lot to do with the way it was done," said Evan. "Patrick pretty much up and left the country when he gave up his. I still stayed on my plan in life and stayed in school and everything."

"That's true," said Cappie taking a sip of his beer.

"It's been weird reminiscing about old times this week," said Evan. "Especially seeing those pictures of us from camp last night. I don't think I've ever seen some of those."

"Yeah, they were pretty funny," said Cappie. "I'm just glad we were able to get passed everything that happened freshman year and get that friendship back."

"Me too Cap," said Evan. "And I don't know if I ever really told you but I just wanted to say that I'm sorry for –"

"No need to say sorry Ev," said Cappie. "You may have stolen Casey away from me freshman year but I pretty much tried to steal her back junior year. I think we're about even."

Evan laughed. "Crazy how a girl could cause so much friction between the two of us."

"Well I'm just glad that one of us ended up with the girl," said Cappie. "And that one of us was me."

Evan picked up a pillow and threw it at Cappie. "That big head of yours may not fit into the doors at my wedding now," he said with a laugh.

"I know, I didn't really mean it that way dude," said Cappie.

"No, you're right," said Evan. "Casey was always hung up on you. I should have known you would come between the two of us from the time I found out she slept with you to get even with me sleeping with Rebecca. I think the right thing happened in the end though. Even if it took having a kid to make the two of you realize you were meant for each other."

"And I'm glad you and Rebecca finally got things right too Ev," said Cappie. "You two are pretty perfect for each other and I know you guys will have a beautiful future."

"Thanks Cap, that means a lot to me coming from you," said Evan.

"Alright, I'm done with all this mushy talk," said Cappie with a small laugh. "Wanna play some Top Gun?"

"You're on," said Evan reaching for the video game controllers.

Over the next hour the boys played video games until the rest of the groomsmen arrived at Evan's apartment. Once all the groomsmen were present they sat around and drank some beers before getting ready for the wedding.

"Well, it's officially one o'clock," said Evan looking at his watch. "I think we should all start getting ready."

"Sounds good bro," said Patrick as he went over and began handing out the tuxedos to the guys.

They had to get dressed in shifts since there was only the bathroom, Evan's room and the guest room to have any privacy to get dressed.

"I always knew pink was my color," said Cappie as he walked out of Evan's room with his black tux and pink vest on.

"You pull it off very well," said Evan as he went into his room to change after Cappie was finished.

A couple of minutes later Evan peeked his head out of the door.

"Uh, Cap," he said trying to get Cappie's attention.

"Yeah?" said Cappie turning around to look towards Evan.

"Can I have you come in here for a second?" Evan asked.

"Look Evan, your wedding day is probably not the time to profess your love to me in your bedroom," said Cappie with a laugh.

"I'm serious," said Evan not laughing at Cappie's remark.

Cappie's face grew serious as he followed Evan into the bedroom.

"Look at this!" said Evan as Cappie shut the door.

Cappie turned around and tried his hardest not to laugh but he couldn't help it. Evan was standing there in his tuxedo pants, which were up to his calf muscles.

"I look like I'm wearing shorts!" said Evan beginning to panic.

"Oh now they aren't that short," said Cappie still laughing.

"I'm serious here Cap," said Evan. "I can't get married in this tux. The pants are obviously too short and I can't even get the coat around my shoulders."

"OK, let's remain calm here," said Cappie. "I'm sure the tuxedo place just gave you the wrong tux or it got switched with someone else."

"Everyone I saw looked fine in their tuxes," said Evan. "Of course mine is the only one that is screwed up!"

"Let me call the rental place," said Cappie as he pulled out his cell phone and dialed the number.

After several recording options Cappie finally got to speak with an operator. He tried to explain to her the situation and that Evan needed a new tux as soon as possible. The lady on the other line said she would see what she could do and call back.

"I guess we just wait to hear from them now," said Cappie sitting down on Evan's bed.

"Rebecca is going to freak out when she hears about this," said Evan.

"Whoa, hold on, we don't even need to tell Rebecca at this point," said Cappie. "As long as the situation gets resolved she'll never have to know. I'm sure the rental place will just deliver you another tuxedo and things will be just fine."

"I hope you're right," said Evan taking off the pants that were too short for him.

About fifteen minutes later the rental place called Evan back on his cell phone.

"OK Mr. Chambers we pulled your order and everything should be correct," said the lady.

"Well everything is not correct!" yelled Evan. "I'm the groom and I can't even fit into my tux!"

"Calm down Mr. Chambers, we are going to do everything we can to help you."

"You are going to bring me the right size tux, that's what you're going to do," said Evan.

"I'm sorry but—"

"Oh no, you are not saying sorry to me," Evan began to yell again. "Do you have any idea who you are talking to? I am Evan CHAMBERS from CHAMBERS international. If you don't make this right I will personally make sure that no one in this entire country uses your rental agency ever again!"

Cappie couldn't help but laugh at Evan's reaction. Here he was always talking about not wanting to be a Chambers but when it came time to drop the name he certainly didn't have a problem doing it.

"Mr. Chambers we do not have any tuxes in your size at our shop," said the lady. "We are working on getting one for you as soon as possible."

"Well you better make it fast," said Evan hanging up the phone on her.

"What are they doing now?" Cappie asked.

"Apparently they don't have any tuxes in my size in the store," said Evan. "So they are trying to find one from somewhere else I guess. God, I can't believe this is happening. We all specifically went there and got measured for our tuxes. I don't understand how this could happen."

There was a knock on Evan's door.

"Not now," said Evan rudely.

"I have a problem Evan," said Calvin from outside the door.

Cappie stood up and opened the door for Calvin. There Calvin stood in his tux which was entirely too long for him. The pants were bunched up at his ankles and the sleeves of the coat fell way past his hands.

"Oh my god not your tux too!" yelled Evan as he picked up the phone to call the rental company back.

"Hold on," said Cappie as he took the phone out of Evan's hand. "Don't you see what is going on here? You must have Calvin's tux and Calvin must have your tux."

Calvin and Evan glanced at each other.

"I hope you're right," said Evan as he pulled Calvin into the room and shut the door.

The two of them then began exchanging the parts of their tuxes. After a couple of minutes everything appeared to be back to normal. Calvin's tux was not too long for him and Evan's fit perfectly.

"You see guys, there was no reason to panic," said Cappie. "Everything worked out OK."

Evan's cell phone rang again.

"Mr. Chambers, we have located another tux—"

"Don't bother," Evan interrupted her. "You people put the wrong labels on the tuxes. One of my groomsmen actually had mine and I had his."

"So everything is OK?" the lady asked.

"Yes, everything is fine," said Evan. "Sorry for raising my voice at you. But you guys really need to be more careful when labeling the tuxes. I just had a breakdown for nothing."

"We are very sorry Mr. Chambers," she replied. "Please let us know if there is any other assistance we can be."

"Thank you," said Evan as he hung up the phone.

"Well, there's another crisis taken care of I guess," said Cappie. "Hopefully there are no more to come."

"Yeah, tell me about it," said Evan. "I don't know if my heart can take anymore problems when it comes to this wedding."

"Hey, at least we didn't have to worry Rebecca with this one," said Cappie. "We were resourceful and handled it ourselves."

"Something like that," said Calvin rolling his eyes.

The three men let out small laughs as they went back out into the living room to mingle with the boys again. A few minutes later Cappie's phone rang. He walked out onto the balcony to take the call.

"Hey Case," he answered the phone.

"Cap, do have Cadence's flower girl dress?" Casey asked.

"Why would I have her dress?" Cappie asked in a confused tone.

"I don't know," said Casey sounding like she was on the verge of tears.

"Calm down honey, it's OK," said Cappie. "I know it has to be here somewhere because I remember packing it in the Jeep to come to Ohio."

"So we didn't leave it with Rusty in Chicago or anything?" Casey asked.

"No," Cappie replied. "I thought you hung it up in the closet in the hotel room when we got in."

"I thought so too but it's not there," said Casey. "And I have no clue where it could be."

"Just stop and take a deep breath," he said. "You need to calm down and not get so worked up about everything."

"I know," said Casey taking a deep breath. "It's just with the whole bridesmaid thing this morning I don't need another thing to go wrong with Rebecca's wedding."

"Even if you don't find it I know Cadence has a pink dress in her bag that she could wear instead in the worst case scenario," said Cappie.

"I know," Casey replied. "I'm going to get going and keep looking."

"Sorry I couldn't be more help," said Cappie.

"It's OK," Casey replied. "At least you were able to verify that the dress did indeed make it to Ohio."

"I'm sure of it," said Cappie.

"OK, love you hun. I'll see you at the church," said Casey.

"Love you too," said Cappie as he hung up the phone.

Instead of going right inside Cappie leaned against the railing of the balcony and thought about the mishaps already associated with the wedding. And he found it weird that he was the one called upon in each one of the situations. So far. No, that wasn't the way for him to think. Everything that could possibly go wrong has already went wrong for the wedding. From here on out everything was going to be smooth sailing for Rebecca and Evan. Or at least he hoped.

* * *

**_A/N: So I liked how this chapter turned out.....especially with Cadence saying the bad word....priceless.....haha. Hopefully everyone enjoyed the new episode last night! I enjoyed it but was disappointed there wasn't more C/C scenes....lol. Hopefully the ratings will be good! The next chapter continues with the wedding. I'll probably post it sometime later this week. Hope you guys liked the new chapter!_**


	113. Heat Wave

HEAT WAVE

The groomsmen arrived at the church about an hour before the ceremony was supposed to start. Press reporters and photographers were already setting up in the parking lot when they arrived. The girls had gotten to the church about an hour earlier to start getting ready and take some pictures before the ceremony. Evan and the groomsmen were taken to one of the Sunday school rooms to wait until the ceremony was ready to start. Cappie took this opportunity to sneak away and find Casey. After looking in several rooms he found her in the nursery with Cadence. Casey was sitting next to one of the cribs as Cadence was sound asleep. Cappie opened the door quietly and walked in. Casey instantly smiled as she saw him and the two of them went to the other side of the room to talk.

"She's been sleeping for a while now," said Casey. "But I figured that the longer she sleeps the less cranky she'll be later tonight when we're at the reception."

"That's true," said Cappie as he pulled Casey to sit in his lap. "Any news on her dress?"

"Yeah, I feel really silly," said Casey smiling and looking at the ground. "It ended up being in the closet in Ash and Beaver's room."

"How did it end up there?" Cappie asked.

"I think what happened was that I had Ashleigh's dress hanging in our closet next to Cadence's dress and when I got Ashleigh's dress out to give to her, Cadence's must of have been hooked onto it or something," Casey replied.

"Well I'm glad that everything worked out OK," said Cappie.

"You certainly look handsome in pink," said Casey looking at Cappie in his tuxedo.

"Why thank you," said Cappie with a smile. "But I am incredibly hot."

He let go of Casey briefly to take his jacket off and hang it on the chair next to them.

"Much better," he said. "And I must say you look pretty stunning yourself."

"You think so?" Casey asked. "Because I really wasn't too fond of this dress when Rebecca first picked it out."

"Well you know you would look good wearing just a brown paper bag if it were up to me," said Cappie leaning in and giving her a kiss on the cheek.

Casey paused and looked at the ground again. "I just hope there aren't more things that go wrong with this wedding," she said.

"Luckily the boys and I were able to handle our own crisis earlier today without involving Rebecca," said Cappie.

"Uh oh, what happened?" Casey asked looking at Cappie.

"It was actually pretty funny at first, for me at least," he said. "Evan's tux didn't fit."

"Oh my gosh," Casey gasped.

"But everything was fixed. Calvin ended up having Evan's tux and Evan ended up having Calvin's so we just switched and everything was fine," Cappie replied.

"Well good, I'm not sure what Rebecca would have done knowing that was happening," said Casey.

"You should have heard Evan on the phone," said Cappie with a laugh. "He was dropping the Chambers name like it was his job trying to get everything fixed."

"Typical Evan," said Casey rolling her eyes.

"Man," said Cappie wiping a few beads of sweat off of his forehead. "I don't know why I'm so hot."

"You're not the only one," said Casey fanning herself with her hand. "I just kind of felt it myself."

"Ma-ma," Cadence said from the other side of the room.

"Mommy's right here," said Casey standing up and going over to Cadence. "Did you have a good nap?"

"Da-da!" Cadence exclaimed as she saw Cappie walk up behind Casey.

"Always a daddy's girl huh?" said Casey with a laugh.

Cappie picked Cadence up and kissed her on the cheek.

"Are you ready to get into your pretty dress?" Cappie asked.

Cadence shook her head yes as Casey got the dress out of the garment bag. The two of them worked together to get Cadence into the dress and tights Rebecca wanted her to wear. Casey then brushed through her natural brunette curls and put her headpiece on.

"I think you have just become the prettiest girl in the room," said Cappie to Cadence.

"Hey!" said Casey jokingly.

Cadence just laughed as Cappie picked her up into his arms.

"Da-da wet," said Cadence wiping her hand on Cappie's head.

"Yeah, daddy is hot," said Cappie. "Here Case, you take her. I'm going to step outside and see if I can cool off."

"OK, see you in a little bit," said Casey taking Cadence and giving Cappie a soft kiss on the lips.

Casey and Cadence exited the nursery behind Cappie and went to the room where Rebecca and the rest of the girls were getting ready. The room was in full panic when they walked in. Rebecca was on the verge of tears and her mom was having some not to nice words with the church coordinator.

"What is going on?" Casey asked Ashleigh.

"The air conditioning to the church just broke," said Ashleigh as she fanned herself with one of the wedding programs.

"Well no wonder why Cappie was sweating all over the place," said Casey.

Casey put Cadence down to play with some of her toys and went over to Rebecca.

"Oh Casey this is horrible!" exclaimed Rebecca as Casey approached her. "I'm sweating so bad my make-up is starting to run! What are we going to do?"

"Can't they get someone out here to fix it?" Casey asked.

"Not for another three hours," said Rebecca. "They've called all the repair people around town and no one has anyone available right now."

Casey sighed. "I don't know what to tell you Bex."

"It's ninety degrees out today Case!" exclaimed Rebecca. "We're liable to have people pass out from heat exhaustion without air conditioning!"

"How about some fans?" said Casey as she was sparked with an idea. "We have plenty of time for someone to go buy some fans we can put around the church to at least get a little bit of air circulating."

"Who on earth is going to go get fans at a time like this?" said Rebecca.

"Just leave it to me," said Casey.

She made sure Ashleigh was watching Cadence and made her way outside the church. She found Cappie sitting on one of the benches.

"I need you to do a huge favor," she said sitting next to him.

"What's going on?" Cappie asked.

"The reason why you're so hot is because the air conditioning broke inside the church," said Casey. "I was wondering if you and Calvin could go out and buy several tower fans that we can put around the church during the ceremony. I would suggest Beaver go too but he will probably slow you down with the hopping and all."

"What is with this 'Cappie to the rescue' thing that's been going on?" Cappie asked with a laugh.

"Because you're always our hero," said Casey with a smile.

"Alright, I'll head out and see what I can find," said Cappie as he stood up and walked back into the church with Casey.

"You're the best honey!" said Casey as she kissed him and went back to Rebecca and the rest of the girls as Cappie went to find Calvin.

* * *

Cappie and Calvin arrived back at the church minutes before the ceremony was scheduled to start with fifteen fans they were able to find. The several hundred guests cheered when they entered the church with the fans as they were all using their programs to circulate any kind of air they could. The boys quickly put the fans in any outlet they could find and turned them all on the highest setting. After a couple of minutes the church wasn't completely cooled off but it was at least a little more bearable than before.

Evan and the minister took their places in the front of the church about ten minutes later so the ceremony could begin.

"Thanks Cap," said Rebecca as he joined Casey in line to walk down the aisle.

"No problem Rebecca," said Cappie. "Anything for you and Evan."

The processional began as the first five couples made their way down the aisle.

"Madam," said Calvin giving his arm to Ashleigh. "Ready for me to escort you down the aisle?"

"Of course," said Ashleigh with a smile as she hooked arms with Calvin and walked towards the altar.

"OK Cadence," said Casey letting go of her hand. "You have to go back and stand with Rebecca until it's your turn to walk down the aisle."

"OK," she said as Rebecca took her hand.

"Shall we my love?" said Cappie offering his arm to Casey.

"With pleasure," said Casey as her and Cappie began to walk towards the altar.

Patrick and Elissa, Rebecca's childhood friend, made their way down the aisle last as the best man and maid of honor. Cadence appeared at the end of the aisle next and looked shocked by the number of people who were staring at her. But she was a determined little girl. She did exactly what she was taught this time by walking slowly down the aisle and throwing flowers on the runner every so often. Casey met her at the end of the aisle like she did with Ashleigh's wedding.

"I DID IT MA-MA!" said Cadence very loudly once she reached Casey. She was obviously proud of her accomplishment. All of the guests let out a chuckle.

"You did very well sweetheart," Casey whispered as she took her hand and sat her in one of the pews next to Rebecca's mother.

It was finally time for Rebecca to meet Evan at the altar.

"Are you ready?" Mr. Logan asked as he hooked arms with Rebecca.

"Ready as I'll ever be," said Rebecca taking a deep breath.

The doors to the church swung open and all of the guests stood as Rebecca and her father began to walk. The first person Rebecca saw was Evan. He looked very proper standing at the altar waiting for her. She looked hard to try and see if he was possibly crying or not. But she knew that Evan really wasn't that kind of guy. And she wasn't certainly that kind of girl. But once Evan took her hand and walked with her closer to the minister she began to lose control of her emotions and tears began to form in her eyes.

"Rebecca Logan doesn't cry," she whispered to herself as the minister began the ceremony.

"I would like to welcome everyone here to witness the marriage of Evan Chambers and Rebecca Logan. I want to first apologize for the heat here in the church. We had the unfortunate experience of our air conditioning breaking right before the ceremony. The couple and I have agreed to make the ceremony as speedy as possible so we can get everyone out of the heat and to the nice air conditioned reception hall," he began.

All of the guests nodded their heads in agreement.

"Evan and Rebecca have come here today to pledge their love and devotion to each other. Today they choose each other before family and friends, to begin their lives together. For all the tomorrows that follow, you will choose each other over and again, in the privacy of your hearts. Let your love and friendship guide you, as you learn and grow together. Experience the wonders of the world, even as patience and wisdom calm the restless nature. Through your partnership, triumph over the challenges in your path. Through the comfort of loving arms, may you always find a safe place to call home. Evan and Rebecca have chosen to memorize and recite traditional vows to each other. Evan, you may go first."

Evan squeezed Rebecca's hands tightly as he looked into her eyes.

"Rebecca," he said. "In the presence of our family and friends, I offer you my solemn vow to be your faithful partner in sickness and in health, in good times and in bad, and in joy as well as sorrow. I promise to love you unconditionally, to support you in your goals, to honor and respect you, to laugh with you and cry with you, and to cherish you for as long as we both shall live."

Evan breathed a sigh of relief after he was finished reciting the vows. He had practiced for hours memorizing them and knew he said them just perfect.

"Rebecca, whenever you are ready," said the minister.

"Evan," Rebecca began fighting back her tears. "In the presence of our family and friends, I offer you my solemn vow to be your faithful partner in good times and in bad, in sickness and health and in joy and sorrow."

Rebecca paused as she searched her brain for the rest of the words.

"I promise…." whispered Evan trying to prompt her.

"Oh yeah," said Rebecca with a sniffle. "I promise to love you unconditionally, to support you in your goals, to respect you, and laugh and cry with you and to cherish you as long as we both shall live."

Rebecca gave Evan a sad look as she squeezed his hand.

"Sorry they weren't as perfect as yours," she whispered.

"It's OK," Evan whispered back and smiled at her.

"Now that Evan and Rebecca have recited their vows in front of all of their guests, we will now do the exchange of rings. The wedding ring symbolizes eternal commitment to one another and serves to remind each of you every day your love for each other," said the minister.

Rebecca and Evan smiled at each other.

"May I have the rings?" the minister asked Patrick.

Patrick suddenly got a scared look on his face as he searched his pockets.

"Ha ha, very funny Patrick," said Evan turning to look at him. "Just give him the rings."

"Ev, I don't have them," whispered Patrick.

"Again, not funny," said Evan. "Just give him the rings so we can get out of this heat wave."

Patrick continued to have a worried look on his face. Evan finally got the point.

"You seriously don't have the rings?" he asked.

Patrick shook his head no slowly. "I must have left them at your apartment."

"Well this is just great," said Rebecca. "Didn't you remind him to make sure he had the rings?"

"Yes, I did remind him, I think," Evan replied.

"Lovely," Rebecca rolled her eyes at him.

Everyone in the audience was just watching the bickering up at the altar.

"Here," Casey finally stepped in and handed the minister her wedding ring.

"Case, what are you doing?" Rebecca asked.

"Consider it on loan until you can get yours," said Casey as she took her place back in line.

Cappie then followed suit and gave his ring to the minister.

"You owe me big time dude," he whispered to Evan as he took his place back in line.

"OK, we shall proceed now," said the minister taking a deep breath and taking in the odd situation he just saw unfold. "Evan, take this ring and place it on Rebecca's finger and say the line 'With this ring, I thee wed.'"

"With this ring, I thee wed," Evan said as he awkwardly put Casey's wedding band on Rebecca's finger.

"Rebecca, you may do the same to Evan," said the minister handing her Cappie's wedding ring.

"With Cappie's ring, I thee wed," Rebecca said with a small laugh. At this point in time there was nothing much more to do than laugh. With all the crazy things that had gone wrong, all that really mattered was that they were almost married.

"You two may now light the unity candle, symbolizing your unity in marriage," said the minister directing Evan and Rebecca to the candles.

"I can't believe we're wearing Cappie and Casey's wedding rings," Evan whispered while they lit the candle.

"Well if your brother wasn't such a bonehead," whispered Rebecca.

"Only at our wedding right?" Evan whispered with a laugh.

"Yeah, got that right," Rebecca replied as they took their places back at the altar.

"And now by the power vested in me by the State of Ohio, I know pronounce you husband and wife. You may now kiss the bride," said the minister.

Evan immediately grabbed the sides of Rebecca's face and pulled her close to him for a passionate kiss which ended up lasting longer than a lot people anticipated. Finally the minister cleared his throat signaling them to stop.

"Oh, sorry," said Rebecca as they broke away.

The minister just smiled. "It is my pleasure to present to you Mr. and Mrs. Evan and Rebecca Chambers."

Everyone in the crowd stood and cheered for the couple as they made their way back down the aisle. Originally the couple was going to have a receiving line at the end of the ceremony but with the broken air conditioning they decided to cancel it and try to greet everyone they could at the reception. Rebecca and Evan waited in one of the classrooms while the bridal party handed all the guests bubbles to blow as they sent the bride and groom off to the reception.

"Well Mrs. Chambers," said Evan pulling Rebecca close to him. "We sure have had quite a day but I guess the most important thing is that we are married."

"That is true," said Rebecca. "It sure has been a crazy ride to get here but I guess our lives wouldn't have it any other way."

"Not a chance," Evan whispered as he dipped Rebecca back and kissed her softly. "By the way," he said standing her back up. "You look really amazing today. That dress is perfect on you."

"I know," said Rebecca with a smile. "And you look pretty handsome yourself."

"Guys, we're ready for your exit," said Elissa, Rebecca's maid of honor, as she poked her head in the room.

"Shall we," said Evan hooking his arm with Rebecca's.

The couple made their way out of the church and down the walkway with hundreds of people blowing bubbles at them. Along with that, there were also several photographers and reporters trying to just get a glimpse at the couple leaving the church.

Evan opened the door to the white 1950s Rolls Royce they rented for their departure and helped Rebecca into the car. He then waved to the crowd as he got in behind her and the two of them drove off into the sunset.

* * *

**_A/N: So what did you guys think? Doesn't seem like Evan and Rebecca can catch a break huh? LoL! The next chapter is the reception and then the chapter after that we finally find out about Cappie and Casey's new baby which I know a lot of you are anxious to find out about :0) The next chapter will probably be up sometime this weekend._**


	114. The Fun Continues

THE FUN CONTINUES

The reception hall at the Grand Plaza Hotel was packed to its maximum. Everyone was enjoying cocktails until the wedding party arrived to start the festivities.

"So how is your foot?" Heath asked as he sat next to Beaver.

"It's hurting," said Beaver. "I just took a pain pill and it clearly states on the bottle that I should not be taking it with alcohol."

Beaver took a drink of his beer.

"You were always one to follow directions well," said Heath with a laugh.

"I need to get drunk being at this crazy wedding," said Beaver. "I was really close to passing out in the church because it was so hot."

"No kidding," replied Heath. "So I hear things are going well with you and Ashleigh and you have a little baby on the way."

"Yeah," said Beaver. "I'm really excited about it."

"That's great Beave," said Heath. "I wish you guys all the best. And if you ever need a good doctor, I might know someone."

Beaver laughed. "Well, if I'm ever in Detroit I'll know who to look up."

"Ladies and gentlemen," said the DJ interrupting their conversation. "I would like to announce that the wedding party has arrived!"

Everyone clapped as the wedding party entered the reception hall.

"And last but certainly not least," continued the DJ. "I would like to welcome the couple of honor, Mr. and Mrs. Evan Chambers!"

All the guests stood and cheered as Rebecca and Evan made their way into the reception hall and began their first dance on the dance floor in the middle of the large room.

"Do we really need to greet all of these people?" Rebecca asked as she wrapped her arms around Evan's neck.

"I think we should just do what we want and enjoy our reception," said Evan pulling Rebecca closer to him.

"I like the way you think Mr. Chambers," said Rebecca as she gave him a soft kiss on the lips.

"So do you think we're wedding mishap free at this point?" Evan asked.

"Well, the air conditioning works here, everyone is dressed and the room looks beautiful," said Rebecca. "So I would think we are out of the woods. I guess the only other worry is that something happens with the food."

"The food should be fine," Evan replied. "We had the tasting and everything was delicious."

"And I'm starving," said Rebecca. "I don't think I've eaten anything since breakfast this morning."

Rebecca leaned forward and nestled her head into Evan's shoulder.

"I'm really happy you're my wife," Evan whispered in her ear.

The two of them swayed back and forth until the song ended and then they took their places at the bridal table for dinner to be served. Dinner surprisingly went off without any problems. The food was delicious and everyone had a good time making conversations around their respective tables. After they finished eating Evan and Rebecca made their way around the reception hall greeting as many people as they could while they finished up their meals. Beaver and Heath came up to the bridal table to join everyone while Rebecca and Evan were away.

"You look a little unsteady on those crutches there," said Calvin as Beaver sat down in the one of the chairs next to him.

"I'm OK," said a drunk Beaver. "The best thing is that my foot doesn't hurt at alllllll."

"He's OK Calv," said Heath. "It's only his third one. I've been keeping an eye on him."

"OK, if you say so," said Calvin as he rested back in his chair.

"When are you guys heading back to Detroit?" Ashleigh asked trying to avoid an argument between the couple.

"Tomorrow," Calvin replied. "Heath has to work tomorrow night."

"Are you working in a specific area or something Heath?" Casey asked.

"Not really," Heath replied. "They mainly have me in the emergency room. Nothing too exciting."

"Do you have an area you want to go in?" Ashleigh asked.

"I think I see myself as kind of a general doctor," Heath replied. "I'll probably just have a family practice. Of I might do something like pediatrics because I do like kids. It'll probably be between one of those two."

"Speaking of kids," said Calvin. "Did I tell you that Casey is pregnant also?"

"Oh my gosh, no you didn't," said Heath. "Congratulations."

"Thanks," said Casey with a smile.

"How are you guys feeling?" Heath asked.

"I'm doing just fine," said Ashleigh. "Casey is the one with the morning sickness."

"Aw, I'm sorry to hear that Casey," said Heath.

"It's OK. It's starting to get better so I think I'll live," said Casey with a small laugh.

"That was really nice of you guys to let Rebecca and Evan borrow your rings," said Calvin. "I was standing there in shock wondering what we were going to do."

"Yeah, way to step up on that one Case," said Ashleigh.

"Thanks guys," Casey replied. "I was just trying to help."

"Well—" Cappie began but was interrupted by panic erupting on the right side of the reception hall.

It took a couple of seconds before the group realized that someone was choking. Heath immediately stood up out of his chair and ran over to the elderly woman who was standing and holding her throat. He wrapped his arms around her and gave her chest a couple of good thrusts before the food was dislodged and went flying across the table.

"What is going on here?" Evan asked as he ran up to the table.

"Your Aunt Mary was choking on a piece of the prime rib," said one the gentlemen at the table.

"Aunt Mary are you OK?" Evan asked as Heath helped her into her chair.

"I just feel so weak," she said as she took a sip of water.

Heath immediately took her hand to see what her pulse was.

"Mmmmm," said Heath after several seconds. "Your pulse is fine. Are you feeling any other symptoms?"

"A little dizzy," she replied.

"Are we going to have to call an ambulance?" Mr. Chambers asked as he joined the group.

"I'm fine," said Aunt Mary as she turned and smiled at Mr. Chambers.

"Wait," said Heath positioning himself in front of her. "Smile again."

Aunt Mary smiled again and Heath realized that one side of her mouth was moving up but the other wasn't.

"She didn't just choke," said Heath looking at Mr. Chambers. "She's having a stroke."

"Oh my god," said Evan.

"We really should call an ambulance or at least have someone take her to the hospital," said Heath.

"I can drive her," said gentleman at the table.

Heath and Evan helped Aunt Mary off of the chair and began walking her across the dance floor to go out to the car. But about halfway through the dance floor she began to collapse.

"I can't hold her up much longer Heath," said Evan.

"OK, let's lower her to the ground," said Heath.

The two boys did so as Heath took her pulse again.

"This is not looking good," said Rebecca as she came up to them. "Evan what is going on?"

"I don't have a pulse anymore," said Heath. "Someone call 911 now!"

Mr. Chambers ran to go call the ambulance as Heath began to perform CPR on Aunt Mary. All of the guests were staring at the sight in horror, wondering exactly what was happening.

"I can't believe this is happening," said Evan. "Hang in there Aunt Mary. You're going to be OK."

Rebecca came over and wrapped her arm around Evan's waist to try and comfort him. After a few rounds of CPR Heath checked her pulse again. He still wasn't getting anything so he continued with the CPR. About five minutes later paramedics arrived. They immediately put a heart monitor on Aunt Mary and saw that she did have a faint heartbeat.

"Great job," said one of the paramedics to Heath.

"She was down for about 8 minutes," said Heath. "I really think she is having a cerebrovascular accident. She had a period of dysphagia where she was choking on her meal. I performed the Heimlich maneuver on her which dislodged the food particle. She then complained of focal weakness and dizziness. We attempted to take her to the car but she collapsed on the floor. I initiated CPR until right before you guys arrived. I really think given her symptoms we are dealing with an embolic stroke so if you guys get her to the hospital quickly she will probably qualify for tPA which will hopefully break up the embolism."

Everyone just stared at Heath with dumbfounded looks on their faces. All the guests had no clue what any of the medical jargon he said was and the paramedics were shocked someone would know as much as he did.

"I'm Dr. Heath Miller by the way," he said to the paramedics.

The paramedics shook his head as they finally realized why Heath knew so much medical information.

"What happened?" they heard someone say faintly.

"You're going to be OK Aunt Mary," said Evan taking her hand.

"My chest hurts," she whispered.

"These men are going to take you to the hospital where everything will be just fine," said Evan.

The paramedics placed Aunt Mary on the stretcher and took her out of the reception hall.

"OK seriously, can this day get any worse?" asked Rebecca once everyone began to mingle again.

"I don't think it's anywhere near as worse as it could have been," said Evan. "Thank god we have Heath here. I owe you one buddy."

"I was just doing my job," said Heath shaking Evan's hand.

"Seems like you'll be owing a lot of us favors after the night is said and done," said Cappie walking up and putting his arm around Evan.

"No kidding," Evan sighed.

"Hey, your aunt is going to be just fine," said Heath. "Try not to let it ruin your night."

"Come on honey," said Rebecca taking Evan's hand. "Let's go for a little walk to try and calm down."

"OK," said Evan as he left the group.

"Weren't you scared?" Cappie asked as him and Heath walked back over to the bridal table.

"No, not really," said Heath. "That is something I do almost every day up in Detroit. It was like natural to me."

"Well I give you a lot of credit for it," said Cappie as they sat back down at the table.

"You, my love, are amazing," said Calvin leaning in and giving Heath a kiss on the lips.

"Thanks," Heath replied blushing just a little. He wasn't used to all of the attention.

"You really saved the day Heath," said Ashleigh.

"My hero!" said Beaver in a high-pitched girly voice.

Everyone laughed.

"Poor Rebecca and Evan," said Casey. "Just when they thought everything was going fine with the wedding, something like this had to happen."

"I just hope she's going to be OK," said Ashleigh.

"She should be OK," said Heath. "It was a good sign that she woke up just before the paramedics took her out of here."

The DJ came up to the group at the table.

"Do you guys know where the bride and groom went?" he asked.

"They went for a walk to try and calm down," Cappie replied.

"Well we really need to get some of the events started like cutting the cake and the bridal dance," said the DJ.

"I'll go find them and let them know," said Casey standing up.

"Thanks," said the DJ as he walked back to his area.

Casey first searched through the hotel trying to find Rebecca and Evan but had no luck so she began to search the grounds outside. She eventually found them sitting on one of the benches outside of the hotel.

"Hey guys," she said walking up to them.

"Hey," they both said softly.

"Sorry about everything that has happened," said Casey.

"This wedding has been a nightmare," said Rebecca. "We had a bridesmaid drop out, tuxes that didn't fit, a church with no air conditioning, no wedding rings and an aunt who is possibly dying."

"Sure all those things happened," said Casey sitting next to them. "But you also have to realize that things got fixed at the same time. We came up with a way to make up for the missing bridesmaid, Evan's tux was just mixed up, we had fans all over the church to try and cool it down, you're wearing mine and Cappie's wedding rings and you had Heath who pretty much saved Aunt Mary's life."

"I guess," mumbled Rebecca.

"Come on guys, what happened to this day being just about the two of you? You two got married and are together happily ever after now," said Casey. "Soon you'll be off on your honeymoon and will look back at all this stuff and just laugh."

"You sound like your husband," said Evan. "Always looking at the positive side of everything."

"There's nothing wrong with that," said Casey. "And we still have a whole night of fun ahead of us. The DJ is ready to get things started but we can't do anything without a bride and a groom."

"Guess you're right," said Evan with a deep breath. "Thanks Case."

"Anytime," said Casey as she reached her hands out for the two of them.

Casey pulled them up to standing and then pulled them in for a hug.

"No more moping," she said. "It's fun wedding time now!"

"OK," said Rebecca with a smile as the three of them walked back into the reception hall.

Once the DJ saw that Evan and Rebecca had entered the room again he started the bridal dance.

"You were gone a little longer than I expected," said Cappie as he pulled Casey close to him.

"Evs and Bex needed a little coaching to get back into the wedding spirit," Casey replied. "They are pretty bummed with everything that has happened today. I think Evan's aunt having a stroke kind of put everything over the edge."

"Well you must have done something right to get them back in here," said Cappie.

"Yeah, Evan said I sounded like you because I was trying to see the positive in things," Casey replied.

"Guess I'm rubbing off on you a little then huh?" said Cappie with a small laugh.

"You could say that," said Casey as she placed a soft kiss on Cappie's cheek.

"Just think," said Cappie. "Tomorrow we'll be driving home and then in three short days we will finally know how things are going with the baby."

"I know," said Casey. "I want nothing more than this one to work out."

"Me neither," said Cappie as he pulled Casey all the way against him and kissed the top of her head.

After the bridal dance was over the DJ instructed that the bride and groom would be cutting the cake in just a few minutes.

"Come on Heath," said Beaver. "Let's get closer so we can see. I told Rebecca to smash the cake all in Bing's face and I want a front row seat if she actually does."

"I doubt she'll do it," said Heath.

"We'll just have to see," slurred Beaver as he stood up and hopped his way over to the cake table.

Ashleigh and Calvin met up with Beaver and Heath on their way over to the table.

"You guys don't have to be over there you know," said Ashleigh.

"Beaver wants to see it," said Heath. "He says Rebecca is supposed to smash cake in Evan's face."

"Ooo, that should be fun to see," said Ashleigh.

The four of them arrived at the cake table and were waiting for Evan and Rebecca to join them.

"Is that actual ribbon on the cake or does it just look like it?" Beaver asked.

"I don't know, who cares," said Ashleigh rolling her eyes at her drunk husband.

The next thing she knew though Beaver took a small hop to get closer to the cake. He quickly lost his balance and went flying forward, right into the cake.

"Oh my god!" said Ashleigh as she looked at Beaver laying there absolutely covered in cake.

"Anyone want any cake?" Beaver asked as he began laughing hysterically.

"What in the hell happened?!?" screamed Rebecca as she arrived at the table.

"I'm so sorry Bex," said Ashleigh. "We was off balance and fell into the cake."

"That cake cost over a thousand dollars!" exclaimed Rebecca.

Evan made his way up to the table and instantly laughed at the sight of Beaver on the floor covered with cake and icing.

"This is not funny Evan!" said Rebecca. "Our cake is ruined!"

Beaver finally sat up and turned to face Rebecca.

"Please don't be mad at me Bex," he said in a little child voice. "I really, really sorry."

Rebecca tried with everything she had to keep from laughing at drunk Beaver laying in her thousand dollar cake. But she couldn't help it and began laughing herself.

"You know," she said between her laughs. "I thought with everything that has happened today, something would happen with the cake like the icing would melt off or the bakers would tip it over when transferring it. But I never thought Beaver would be laying in a pile of the cake on the floor."

"It is pretty damn funny," said Evan as he put her arm around Rebecca.

"Cadence, no running," they all heard Cappie say behind them as they heard little footsteps coming closer to them.

"Yay fun!" yelled Cadence as she jumped right into Beaver's arms and began squishing cake between her hands.

"Cadence no!" said Cappie but he was clearly too late.

Everyone standing around the table began to laugh harder as Cadence and Beaver began throwing cake at each other.

"That's going to be fun to clean up tonight," mumbled Cappie.

"Oh come on Cap, look at the positive side of it, at least your daughter is having fun," said Evan.

Casey then came up next to Cappie and gasped.

"I go to the bathroom for a couple of minutes and come back to my daughter and Beaver wrestling around in the cake?!" she exclaimed.

"That sounded must kinkier than I believe you intended it to be," said Cappie putting his arm around Casey and laughing.

"Ma-ma! Yummy!" said Cadence putting some of the cake in her mouth.

"Cadence you ruined your pretty dress," said Casey.

"I sowwy," said Cadence with a smile on her face.

Casey just smiled as her and Cappie helped Cadence up off of Beaver. Heath and Calvin then assisted Beaver in getting up off the floor.

"I think it's time we just head up to the honeymoon suite and make love," said Evan turning to Rebecca.

"Yeah, sounds like a plan to me," Rebecca replied.

The two of them went up to the DJ and took the microphone from him.

"Sorry, there will be no cake this evening," said Rebecca. "Unless I guess you want to eat it off the floor."

All of the guests chuckled.

"Evan and I would just like to thank everyone for coming," continued Rebecca. "This day has been more than crazy for Evan and I. And even though we still have a couple of hours left in the reception, I think you can all sympathize with us in realizing we just want this night to be over with. So you are more than welcome to stay and dance and drink. But Evan and I are going to make our exit now and hopefully wake up to a much better day tomorrow. Thanks again and we'll see everyone later."

Everyone clapped and cheered as Evan and Rebecca left the reception hall and headed up to their hotel room. Once they arrived in the hotel room they elected to take a nice long bath together to help relax after such a stressful day.

"You know, it really didn't matter that my parents were there today," said Evan as he pulled Rebecca against him in the tub. "I only talked to my dad once when Aunt Mary was in trouble. Other than that, I barely saw them."

"Yeah, but it was just nice knowing that they were there," said Rebecca.

"I guess," Evan replied.

The two of them sat in the Jacuzzi tub for about fifteen minutes in silence.

"Is it bad that I'm almost too drained to have sex right now?" Rebecca finally asked as she leaned her head back against Evan.

"Hey!" said Evan in a disappointed voice.

Rebecca turned around and kissed Evan passionately.

"Nah, I was just kidding," she said as she backed away.

"Thank goodness Mrs. Chambers," said Evan as he began rubbing his hands up and down Rebecca's naked body.

Rebecca smiled and began kissing Evan again. Soon the two of them made their way out of the Jacuzzi tub and to the king size bed in the room. The two of them made love several times over the next few hours. Things were much better now that it was just the two of them. All the things that went wrong at the wedding were the furthest things from their minds. All that mattered was the two of them were connected as one and they were husband and wife, now and forever.

* * *

**_A/N: Sorry I posted this a little later this weekend than I thought. Hope you guys enjoyed the rest of the wedding. The next chapter is exciting because we find out about the babies! Please review to keep me motivated! And don't forget to watch the new episode tomorrow (Monday)! The next two weeks are very important for the ratings to see if we'll get a 4th season. It looks like it's going to be a good episode tomorrow with hopefully lots more C/C scenes than the last episode!_**


	115. Confidence

CONFIDENCE

While Evan and Rebecca went off on their honeymoon, everyone in Chicago was anxiously awaiting their doctor appointments. Ashleigh called Dr. Snyder first thing on Monday and ended up lucking out and getting an appointment for Tuesday since someone had cancelled. Casey's appointment wasn't until Wednesday.

"Are you sure you don't want me to come with you?" Casey asked as she watched Ashleigh run around the house making sure she had everything she needed.

"Yes, I'm sure," said Ashleigh. "Beaver and I will be just fine."

"Yeah but I could show you exactly where to go and explain all the things that go on," said Casey, almost whining at this point.

Ashleigh stopped and stared at Casey. "You just want to go to see if Dr. Snyder can squeeze you in don't you?" she asked.

"No," Casey replied in an unconvincing tone.

"Why don't you just take my appointment then and I'll go tomorrow," said Ashleigh.

"No, seriously, I'm fine. I was just trying to help," said Casey.

Ashleigh glared at her again.

"OK, fine, I'm still a little on edge about everything but this is your appointment," said Casey reading Ashleigh's glare. "I'm not going to take it from you. Plus Cappie is at the restaurant for another hour so Beaver could leave early to go with you and I would want him there anyway."

"Speaking of Beaver," said Ashleigh looking out the window. "I wonder where he is. He was supposed to pick me up ten minutes ago."

"He's probably just stuck in traffic or something," said Casey. "Dr. Snyder's office isn't far. You guys will still make it on time as long as he shows up soon. Wait, how is Beaver even driving?"

"He broke his left ankle," Ashleigh replied. "He can still drive with his right."

"Oh, gotcha," said Casey.

"Ew, I'll be right back," said Ashleigh as she made her way into the bathroom and shut the door.

Casey couldn't help but smile just a little bit. The past couple of days Ashleigh began getting morning sickness. But unfortunately for her it wasn't always morning sickness, the day before it was all day sickness. Casey felt bad for her best friend and hoped it didn't last too long for her.

A minute later Ashleigh made her way out of the bathroom as Beaver pulled into the garage.

"It's about time," said Ashleigh as she grabbed her purse and headed out to the car.

"Here, give me a hug," said Casey following closely behind her. "Good luck and make sure you call me and tell me all the details."

"I will," said Ashleigh wrapping her arms around Casey for a hug.

"And good luck to you too daddy," said Casey to Beaver as Ashleigh got into the car. "Don't be too nervous."

"I'm not," said Beaver. "I got some coaching from Cappie earlier today."

"Oh lord," said Casey with a smile.

"I'll call you later," said Ashleigh as she shut the door.

Ashleigh and Beaver watched Casey get into her car and drive off.

"Well, are we ready for this?" Beaver asked as he put the car in reverse.

"Ready as I'll ever be," said Ashleigh. "From what Casey says the doctor is probably only going to do a blood test today because it's pretty early for an ultrasound."

"Yeah, that's what Cappie said too," said Beaver as he began driving towards the doctor's office.

"I got sick quite a few times today," said Ashleigh. "I don't understand how in the beginning I was eating like a horse and now I can barely keep anything down."

"Hey, at least you're not gaining weight," said Beaver trying to look at the bright side of things.

Ashleigh glared at him. "I would rather be gaining weight than projectile vomiting all over the place."

"Point taken," said Beaver softly.

Ashleigh reached over and set her hand on Beaver's thigh.

"Thanks for coming with me babe," she said. "I know it's probably not going to be very exciting but it's nice to have someone there."

"I'm surprised Casey didn't try to come with us," said Beaver.

"Oh she did," said Ashleigh with a small laugh. "I told her to go home and wait her turn tomorrow."

"Really?" Beaver asked.

"OK, not really," said Ashleigh with a sigh. "I actually tried to give her this appointment so she would stop making me feel so guilty about getting in before her."

"You guys are crazy," said Beaver shaking his head.

The two of them drove the rest of the way in silence. Beaver pulled up to the front of the office and let Ashleigh out.

"I'll meet you inside," said Ashleigh as she shut the door.

Beaver went to park the car as Ashleigh made her way into the office. She was shocked when she saw the number of pregnant women in the waiting room. She went up to the secretary's desk and signed in and received forms to fill out. She sat down and began filling them out. About a minute later Beaver came hopping in and sat next to her.

"Awkwaaarrd," he whispered to her as he looked around the room at the pregnant women, some with significant others, some without.

"If anything you should feel awkward in that pink cast," said Ashleigh with a smile.

"Point taken," Beaver replied with a sigh.

"Do we know how far along I am?" Ashleigh asked as she was having trouble filling out some of the questions on the paper.

"How am I supposed to know?" Beaver asked.

"Well you keep track of our sex life more than I do," said Ashleigh.

"Yes, that's true," said Beaver. "But I couldn't tell you what time I made you pregnant."

"Some help you are," said Ashleigh jokingly as she just wrote a question mark on the line to answer the question.

Ashleigh filled out the rest of the paperwork to the best of her ability and turned it into the secretary.

"How many times do we have to come here?" Beaver asked as Ashleigh sat back down.

"I don't know," Ashleigh replied. "I guess it just depends on how the baby is but I'm assuming at least four or five more times."

Beaver's phone then went off causing everyone in the waiting room to stare at him.

"You didn't put that thing on silent?" Ashleigh scolded him.

"I didn't think it would be a problem," said Beaver as he silenced the phone and saw that it was a text message from Cappie.

"_Are you there yet?"_ it asked.

Beaver replied with a _'yes'_ and put his phone back in his pocket, this time on vibrate.

"Who was that?" Ashleigh asked.

"Just Cappie checking up on me," said Beaver.

"Oh brother," Ashleigh mumbled as she picked up one of the random magazines to read to help pass the time.

It was about fifteen minutes later when the nurse called Ashleigh's name to come back to the exam room.

"If you could please step on the scale so I can get your weight," the nurse asked.

Ashleigh handed her purse to Beaver and stepped on the scale. She about collapsed when she saw the number.

"How on earth have I gained ten pounds already?" she asked as she stepped off the scale.

"Well you were eating quite a bit," said Beaver. "Or maybe it's just water weight."

Ashleigh gave him a strange look. "Since when did you become a doctor?"

"I don't know, it was just something Heath brought up when I was talking with him," said Beaver.

The nurse didn't add anything to the conversation as she directed Ashleigh to sit on the exam table and took her vital signs. Ashleigh breathed a sigh of relief when the nurse told her they were normal. The nurse then drew some blood and told them the doctor would be in soon and left the room.

"OK, now I'm nervous," said Ashleigh.

Beaver sat next to her and took her hand.

"Everything is fine," said Beaver. "Aren't you supposed to gain weight?"

"Yes, but according to Casey it should only be like six pounds," said Ashleigh.

"Listen to you making Casey the doctor now," said Beaver squeezing her hand. "Besides, an extra four pounds is not that much. Maybe you weighed a few more pounds more than you though before you got pregnant."

"I knew exactly what I weighed before I got pregnant," said Ashleigh sternly.

"OK," said Beaver backing off. "I was just trying to help."

Ashleigh sighed. "I know, I'm sorry. The whole weight thing has just gotten me all nervous."

"There's no reason to be nervous until the doctor tells you there is a concern," said Beaver. "Let's just wait to hear what she has to say."

Ashleigh squeezed Beaver's hand back as she looked around the room.

"I especially like the artwork in here," said Beaver noticing Ashleigh was looking at the posters on the wall. "Cappie warned me they were a little graphic."

"Yeah seriously," said Ashleigh. "Why would they put those things up on the wall?"

"I guess so people can see what is going on in a pregnant woman's body," suggested Beaver.

There was a knock at the door and Dr. Snyder walked in.

"Hello," she said. "You must be Ashleigh."

"Yes," said Ashleigh as she shook Dr. Snyder's hand. "And this is my husband Charles."

"Nice to meet you," said Dr. Snyder shaking Beaver's hand. "So I understand you are friends with Casey Cappington," she continued as she took a seat on the rolling stool and opened Ashleigh's chart.

"Yeah, she's my best friend," Ashleigh replied.

"I think I see her tomorrow," said Dr. Snyder.

"You do," said Ashleigh. "And she's really nervous after everything that happened the last time."

"Yes, such a devastating thing to happen to her," said Dr. Snyder. "But it should be fun now that the two of you are pregnant at the same time."

"They are excited, believe me," said Beaver with a small laugh.

"So Ashleigh, do you have any idea about how far along you are?" Dr. Snyder asked.

"I really have no clue," said Ashleigh. "There were a couple of days where I was just eating everything in sight so we decided to take a pregnancy test just to see and it ended up being positive."

"Yes, you are definitely pregnant by your hormone levels," said Dr. Snyder. "When did you take the pregnancy test?"

"Um, a week, maybe a week and a half ago," said Ashleigh.

"Hmmmm," said Dr. Snyder continuing to examine Ashleigh's chart.

"Something wrong?" Ashleigh asked, her voice cracking with nervousness.

"It's just that your hormone levels are higher than I would expect at this point in your pregnancy," said Dr. Snyder.

"Does that mean that something is wrong?" Beaver asked as he grabbed for Ashleigh's hand again.

"Not necessarily," Dr. Snyder replied. "But I think I want to get an ultrasound today just to check things out and make sure everything is OK."

"Um, OK," said Ashleigh as her heart began to race.

"Go ahead and lie back on the table," said the doctor as she turned on the ultrasound machine.

Dr. Snyder then reached for the gel and realized there wasn't much left.

"Excuse me, I'm going to refill this. I'll be back in a bit," she said as she left the room.

"Beave," Ashleigh uttered softly fighting back tears.

"Now don't cry," said Beaver squeezing her hand. "We don't even know that anything is wrong at this point in time. The doctor is probably just being cautious after everything that happened with Casey."

"Yeah but what if something is wrong?" Ashleigh asked. "Then what are we going to do?"

"Ash, please just calm down and wait until the ultrasound is done," said Beaver.

"Sorry about that," said Dr. Snyder as she came back into the room.

Ashleigh nervously lifted up her shirt as Dr. Snyder squeezed the warm gel on her lower stomach.

"I'm not sure how much I'm going to be able to see," said Dr. Snyder as she put the ultrasound head on Ashleigh's stomach. "If it's pretty early in the pregnancy I may not see anything. But I just want to check it out."

Ashleigh and Beaver stared intently at the ultrasound screen trying to make out anything that resembled a baby on the screen. Eventually Ashleigh gave up and looked at Dr. Snyder instead. She figured her facial expressions would tell more of what was going on than the screen which she had no idea what she was looking at.

Dr. Snyder then got a confused look on her face as she moved her head closer to the screen for a closer look. Ashleigh wanted to ask what was going on but the words just wouldn't come out of her mouth. Luckily Beaver was there to save the day.

"Is something wrong?" he asked.

"Give me one second," said Dr. Snyder. "I'm trying to magnify this to get a better look."

The two of them waited patiently as Dr. Snyder continued studying the screen, typing numbers and taking measurements.

"Well, I found out why your hormones are so elevated," she said turning the screen more towards Ashleigh and Beaver.

"I have no idea what I'm looking at," said Beaver.

Dr. Snyder put her hand up to the screen. "There's one baby," she said pointing to one of the dots. "And there's another baby," she said pointing to a dot close to the other one.

"Uh, I think there's only supposed to be one baby in there," said Beaver.

"You'd be surprised," said Dr. Snyder wiping the gel off of Ashleigh's stomach. "Twins are becoming more and more popular these days."

"Wait, twins?" Ashleigh finally blurted out as she sat up on the exam table.

"Yes, you are having twins," said Dr. Snyder. "Do either of you have any sets of twins in your families?"

"Not that I know of," said Ashleigh.

"I have two aunts that are twins, and two cousins who are twins," said Beaver.

"And how come you never told me this?" Ashleigh asked.

"I didn't think it was important," Beaver shrugged his shoulders.

"It's possible this happened because of Charles' family but this is also something that just could have happened spontaneously," said Dr. Snyder. "We'll never really know but certainly congratulations to you two."

"I think I'm going to faint," said Ashleigh as she laid back down on the exam table.

"No reason to faint," said Dr. Snyder. "Both of the babies look just fine. Your weight gain is consistent with having twins and it now explains why your hormone levels were higher than normal."

"That may be all fine and dandy," said Ashleigh. "But what about emotionally handling this news? I was scared enough for one baby and now I'm going to have two?"

Ashleigh began to hyperventilate and Beaver began to fan her with a nearby folder he found.

"Everything is going to be just fine Ashleigh," said Dr. Snyder. "I have patients who have twins all of the time and they do just fine. Sure it's a little more work and a little harder pregnancy but the end result is really magical."

"So do you know how far along she is?" Beaver asked as he helped Ashleigh sit up on the exam table.

"I would say about eight weeks right now," Dr. Snyder replied. "But I'll be able to give you a more accurate answer once we do another ultrasound several weeks from now."

"Is there anything different I should be doing?" Ashleigh asked.

"No, just keep taking your prenatal vitamins and really try to watch what you eat. Women with twins tend to gain anywhere from thirty to forty pounds and we don't want all that weight gained in the first trimester," said Dr. Snyder.

"Wow, OK," said Ashleigh taking some deep breaths. "I'm sorry, I'm just a little shocked."

"It's OK," said Dr. Snyder. "Why don't I give you two a little time to talk. You can schedule with the secretary when you are ready to leave."

"Thanks doctor," said Ashleigh as Dr. Snyder walked out of the room.

"OK, my turn to pass out," said Beaver as he fell into the chair as soon as the doctor left the room.

"Wait, why are you just now getting nervous?" Ashleigh asked.

"You have no idea how hard it was for me to sit there and be the supporting husband while the doctor was here," said Beaver beginning to fan himself.

"Oh so all that niceness was just an act?" Ashleigh asked.

"No, not at all," Beaver replied. "I was just trying my hardest to not completely lose it."

"What in the hell are we going to do?" Ashleigh asked.

"I've been asking myself the same thing," said Beaver. "I don't know the first thing about raising one kid. I thought I could get one kid out of the way and if I screwed him up then we could at least have another one I could redeem myself with. But now that we're having two at the same time my whole plan is screwed up."

"That's one hell of a plan," mumbled Ashleigh.

The two of them sat for several minutes in silence. Each of them was having a hard time getting over the shock of having two babies. It just didn't seem possible to them.

"Ash," said Beaver finally standing up and hopping in front of her. "Just know that we are in this together. I know I may not be the greatest husband in the world but I'm really going to try and be there for you."

"Thanks hun," said Ashleigh softly as the two of them embraced. "We do make a pretty good team."

"And now with my awesome sperm we're going to have a team of four," said Beaver with a small laugh.

Ashleigh also let out a small giggle. "I love you Beave."

"I love you too Ash," said Beaver kissing her softly on the lips.

"I guess we should probably get out of here now huh?" Ashleigh asked as she stood up off of the exam table.

"Yeah, sounds like a plan," said Beaver as he opened the door open for Ashleigh and the two of them walked out to the secretary to make the next appointment.

After Ashleigh made her next appointment the two of them walked out to the car.

"I guess the next step is running to tell Casey and Cappie?" Beaver asked.

"I've got to tell somebody else soon or else I'm going to burst," said Ashleigh as she buckled her seatbelt.

"Well off to the Cappington house it is," said Beaver as he began driving.

The drive to Casey and Cappie's home was short and Ashleigh and Beaver barely spoke, still trying to process the major change in their lives they just found out about. Beaver pulled into the driveway and the two of them made their way to the front door.

"Cadence is probably down for her nap," said Ashleigh. "We should just walk in so we don't wake her up."

"OK," said Beaver as he opened the front door and the two of them went into the foyer.

The two of them made their way into the living room and were stopped dead in their tracks as they saw Casey and Cappie on the couch.

"Woops," said Ashleigh shielding her eyes.

"Ash!" said a very startled Casey as she covered her naked body up with a blanket. "What are you doing here?"

"You know, you really shouldn't leave your front door unlocked if you guys are going to do that," said Beaver trying not to laugh.

"We'll just wait in the foyer while you guys finish up, or get dressed or do whatever you need to do," said Ashleigh very embarrassed as she pulled Beaver towards the front door.

"Well that was one way to ruin the mood," said Cappie jokingly as he grabbed his boxers off the floor and put them on.

"Totally," said Casey as she also grabbed clothes off the floor and began dressing herself. "And you looked so incredibly hot in those work clothes when you came home. Damn them."

"Now let's not blame them," said Cappie softly. "They both actually looked kind of out of it. I hope everything is OK."

"Well you would look out of it too if you just walked in on your two best friends having sex," said Casey as she put her shirt on.

"True," said Cappie. "But there is something else going on. I hope everything is OK with the baby."

Suddenly Casey's face became very serious. "Oh god, the baby. They just had their appointment."

"Uh, yeah," said Cappie as he put his last piece of clothing on.

"OK guys, you can come in," yelled Casey to Ashleigh and Beaver.

The two of them slowly made their way into the living room and sat on the other side of the sectional couch.

"Sorry about that," said Ashleigh. "We figured Cadence was sleeping so we didn't want to ring the doorbell."

"It's fine," said Casey. "Now tell us all about the appointment."

Ashleigh and Beaver glanced at each other.

"Is everything OK?" Cappie asked.

"We're having twins," Ashleigh blurted out.

"What?!" exclaimed Casey. "No way!"

"Yeah, the doctor did an ultrasound today to confirm it and everything," said Ashleigh.

"Wow, I'm so happy for you," said Casey. "This just must be quite a shock for you guys."

"A big shock," said Ashleigh. "We're both still trying to process exactly what is going on."

"I can understand," said Casey, unsure of what to say to her best friend.

"Beave, why don't you come with me downstairs and get a beer," said Cappie realizing that Beaver probably needed some man time. "We'll let these two ladies chat."

"OK," said Beaver softly as he followed Cappie down to the basement, skillfully sliding down on his butt.

Cappie grabbed two beers out of the fridge and the two of them sat on the couch.

"You doing OK buddy?" Cappie asked as he opened his beer.

"No," Beaver said solemnly, not even opening his beer.

"This is supposed to be a happy time," said Cappie. "Having a baby is a joyous experience."

"Yeah, well, when you find out you're having more than one it kind of puts a different spin on the experience," said Beaver.

"Hey, I'll have two kids too after Casey delivers the new baby," said Cappie.

"But it's different," said Beaver. "Cadence is walking and talking and can care for herself a little bit."

"But she's still going to need diaper changes and naptime and meals made for her," said Cappie. "It's really not going to be all that different."

"I don't know man," said Beaver with a sigh as he set the unopened beer on the table in front of him. "I was scared enough about having one kid. Things just don't seem right now that we're having two."

"But you can't really change things," said Cappie.

"I guess deep down I've always been a child at heart," said Beaver. "And yes I have grown up a lot since moving to Chicago and started dating Ashleigh. But that kid is still in me and it makes me scared that I'm not mature enough to handle this."

"Beave, having kids allows yourself to become a kid again at times," said Cappie. "I don't know how many times I find myself sitting on the floor with Cadence playing with toys or chasing her around the house playing games. You're going to have two beautiful babies you're going to get to experience that with. And I know you're going to do just fine."

"I love how you have so much more confidence in me than I have in myself," said Beaver with a small laugh.

"Hey, that's what best friends are for," said Cappie. "Somebody's gotta have confidence to show you that you can do this. And you will have Casey and I there to help you guys along the way."

"Cap, you're going to have your own newborn to deal with," said Beaver.

"So we can all get together and have group playtime," said Cappie with a laugh.

Beaver also let out a small laugh.

"See, there is the Beave that I know," said Cappie picking up the beer on the table and handing it to Beaver. "You're a lot stronger than you think. Just give it some time to process and I'm sure you'll realize how great of an opportunity the man upstairs has given you."

"I hope you're right Cap," said Beaver as he twisted the cap off his beer.

"To bright futures with lots and lots of babies," said Cappie as he clanked his beer bottle with Beaver's.

* * *

**_A/N: So what did everyone think of the new episode last night? I thought it was AWESOME! Much more C/C scenes than the last episode and some really funny moments. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for good ratings later today!_**

**_And what did you think of this chapter? I know most of you are waiting to hear about Cappie and Casey's baby and I PROMISE you'll find out in the next chapter. I think it's exciting that Beave and Ash are having twins :0) Yay for them! Keep the reviews coming, you know how much I appreciate them!_**

**_So I completely forgot about Beaver being on crutches when I wrote this chapter originally...lol....and it bothered me so I went back and fixed it. Thanks KaraVasquez for the heads up on that one...haha :0)_**


	116. Ice Cream

ICE CREAM

Casey had a horrible time trying to fall asleep Tuesday night. She tossed and turned for hours thinking about the baby and the doctor's appointment the next day. It was probably close to two am before she completely fell asleep.

Cadence began calling out for her around eight the next morning but since Cappie took the day off he offered to get up and get her breakfast and ready for the day. Casey was thankful and quickly fell back asleep.

It was almost ten o'clock when Cappie and Cadence decided it was time for Casey to wake up. Cappie carried Cadence into the bedroom and set her on the bed.

"Go ahead, give her a kiss to wake her up," Cappie whispered to Cadence.

Cadence leaned down and opened her mouth wide leaving a very wet kiss on Casey's cheek.

"Cap, that was gross," mumbled Casey without opening her eyes and realizing it was Cadence who had given her the kiss.

"Do it again," Cappie whispered to Cadence trying his hardest not to laugh too loud.

Cadence again gave her mom a wet kiss on the cheek.

"Cap, I'm not in the mood," Casey mumbled again but this time she opened her eyes. "Oh, you're not your daddy."

"Noooo," said Cadence with a giggle.

"Good morning Case," said Cappie, now laughing out loud as he sat down on the bed.

"Morning to both of you," said Casey in a groggy tone as she sat up in the bed.

"Da-da gave me ice cream!" exclaimed Cadence as she made herself comfortable in Casey's lap.

"Oh he did?" Casey asked glaring at Cappie.

"Yup!" said Cadence.

"Seriously Cap, ice cream for breakfast?" Casey asked in a disapproving tone.

"It wasn't all we had," said Cappie defending himself. "I gave her some dry cheerios and her baby cereal first. And then she asked for ice cream and I didn't see any harm in it."

"The harm is teaching her bad habits," said Casey. "Ice cream is a dessert, not a breakfast."

"Well I thought today was OK since it is a special occasion," said Cappie.

"And what special occasion would this be?" Casey asked.

"Finding out the baby is OK of course," said Cappie.

"I think the ice cream would be more appropriate for afterwards when we find out that things are actually OK," said Casey.

"Stop being so pessimistic," said Cappie.

"Stop being so optimistic," said Casey.

"Stop!" said Cadence getting into the discussion her parents were having.

"See, listen to your daughter," said Casey as she wrapped her arms around Cadence and gave her a kiss on the cheek.

"I just don't understand why you are thinking the worst with everything," said Cappie. "Everything has gone fine. You haven't had any symptoms of things going wrong."

"That doesn't mean that there isn't anything wrong," said Casey.

"OK, fine. I'm done discussing this with you then," said Cappie. "We'll just have to see what happens this afternoon at the doctor."

"Don't be mad at me," said Casey.

"I'm not mad," said Cappie. "I'm just disappointed that you can't at least try to be a little more optimistic about things. That's all."

"Da-da play," said Cadence as she got off of Casey's lap and went over to Cappie.

"And what would you like to play my little princess?" Cappie asked.

"Ball!" said Cadence.

"OK, let's go to your room and play some ball," said Cappie as he picked her up and began walking out of the bedroom.

"Cap," Casey called to him just as he reached the door.

Cappie turned around to look at Casey.

"I'm sorry," she said softly.

"It's OK," said Cappie. "I know you've been through a lot. Let's just try to stay somewhat positive until we're told otherwise."

"OK," said Casey as Cappie turned around and made his way to Cadence's room.

Around noon Beaver arrived at the Cappington house.

"How is your ankle?" Cappie asked as Beaver plopped down in one of the kitchen chairs.

"I am so ready to have this cast off," said Beaver. "I have a follow up with a doctor here in town next week. I'm hoping I'm one of those people who heal super fast and he can take this cast off."

"The hospital doctor said four to six weeks," said Cappie. "Next week is only like the second week."

"Don't remind me," said Beaver shaking his head.

"So did Ashleigh head back to work today?" Cappie asked.

"Yeah, she got a little sick this morning and was thinking about calling off but she ended up going," Beaver replied. "I'm not sure how much longer she's going to be working there though."

"Why? Did something happen?" Cappie asked.

"No," Beaver replied. "The two of us had a long conversation last night about our future now that we have two babies on the way and Ashleigh thinks she may want to do what Casey does and stay home with the kids."

"Nothing wrong with that," said Cappie. "I know Casey sometimes feels bad she has a college degree and really isn't using it. She could get a job anytime she wants to but I think the thought of having Cadence go to day care every day when she is able to stay home with the baby keeps her from getting a full time job."

"And you guys can make it OK?" Beaver asked. "Financially I mean."

"Yeah, we're more than fine," said Cappie. "Why? Are you and Ashleigh having problems?"

"No," Beaver replied quickly. "I just know it's a lot of money to raise one baby and here we are going to be raising two. Double the diapers, double the formula, double the toys, double the clothes. It all just is a little overwhelming financially."

"That's true," Cappie replied. "But if you ever need any assistance you know I'm always here for you. I still have quite a bit of money left from my grandpa's inheritance."

"I was thinking you could help me in a little different way," said Beaver.

Cappie gave him a confused look as he sat down next to him at the table.

"What do you think about opening a second location of our restaurant?" Beaver asked.

"I've never really thought about it," Cappie replied.

"Well I think it would be a great opportunity for the both of us," said Beaver. "With as much success as the first restaurant has been I don't have a doubt we can't open another kick ass establishment. I've even looked into a couple of locations closer to our homes here."

"Don't you think around here would be a little too close to our original place?" Cappie asked.

"Possibly," said Beaver. "I've got a few places further north that would also work out. I just need you on board with things as my business manager."

Cappie took a deep breath.

"I don't know man," said Cappie. "I think opening a new place may be a lot on us with having two pregnant wives also."

"You have my word that things will be fine," said Beaver. "I'll hire out most of the contractors to get the place ready so we wouldn't have to be there that much and it really wouldn't interfere too much if we can get it up and going quickly."

"Well if you put it that way," said Cappie. "I think we may be able to make it work."

"So you're in?" Beaver asked holding his hand out to Cappie.

"I'm in," Cappie replied shaking Beaver's hand.

"What are you in?" Casey asked as she walked into the kitchen holding Cadence.

"Beaver and I are going to open a second location of the restaurant," said Cappie.

"Really?" Casey asked somewhat shocked as she put Cadence in her highchair.

"Well right now it's just kind of a thought," said Cappie. "We don't have any set plans or anything but Beaver said he's got some ideas."

"I think it would be a good idea," said Casey as she began cutting up a banana for Cadence's lunch.

"You do?" Cappie asked somewhat surprised with Casey's reaction given her recent pessimistic attitude.

"Sure! The first restaurant has done so well I think it's only a natural step to expand the name," Casey replied as she gave Cadence the banana she cut up.

"Yummy!" said Cadence as she took a piece with her hands and put it in her mouth.

"Are you sure you'll be OK watching her while we're gone with that cast and all?" Casey asked Beaver.

"We'll be fine," Beaver replied. "She's able to walk so it's not like I have to carry her or anything."

"OK," Casey replied. "I'm going to heat her up some chicken nuggets for lunch. If she asks for a snack before her nap there is some yogurt in the refrigerator that she loves."

"Yes mommy," said Beaver.

"My ma-ma!" said Cadence defensively.

"Yes, I'm just your mommy," said Casey putting the chicken nuggets in the microwave. "Beaver was just trying to be funny."

"Wow, you've got a possessive little one there," said Beaver. "It'll be interesting to see how she reacts to the new baby."

"She'll be fine," said Cappie. "We've got plenty of time to help her understand what is going on."

"Alright," said Casey putting the chicken nuggets on Cadence's tray. "Mommy and daddy are going to leave for a little bit but Uncle Beaver is going to watch you."

"Bye-bye!" said Cadence as she began eating the chicken nuggets.

"Talk about quick to get rid of us," said Cappie with a laugh.

"When it comes to hanging out with Uncle Beaver she'll gladly get rid of us," said Casey with a laugh. "We should be back in a few hours Beave. She usually goes down for her nap around two."

"Good luck guys," said Beaver.

"Thanks man," said Cappie.

Cappie kissed Cadence on the cheek quickly and he and Casey headed outside and into the Jeep.

Around ten minutes later the two of them arrived at Dr. Snyder's office. Cappie put the car in park and began to get out when he realized Casey wasn't getting out along with him.

"Cap, what are we going to do if there is something wrong?" Casey asked.

Cappie brought his leg back into the car and shut the door. He turned to face Casey and took her hand into his.

"If for some reason there is something wrong we'll deal with it appropriately," said Cappie squeezing her hand.

"I've never been more scared of anything in my entire life," said Casey turning to look at Cappie.

He could see the tears starting to fill in her eyes as he took his other hand and brushed the side of her cheek.

"If the two of us are just meant to have Cadence then that's what we'll do," said Cappie. "If this pregnancy doesn't work out we'll go get a dog or a cat and it'll just be our little family. Please don't cry. Everything will work itself out."

Casey let out a small smile as she leaned into Cappie's hand that cupped the side of her face.

"And besides," continued Cappie. "Ashleigh and Beaver don't need two babies; we can always take one of theirs."

"That's not nice," said Casey with a laugh as she playfully hit Cappie on the chest.

"But it got you to laugh," said Cappie looking straight into his wife's eyes. "All I want is for you to let go of some of this tension. In a little bit we'll know for sure what our future holds. And we can start making decisions once we know OK?"

"OK," said Casey shaking her head. "Thanks Cap. I really do love you."

"And I love you too sweetheart," said Cappie as he leaned in and gave Casey a soft kiss on the lips.

"Guess it's time to head on in there," said Casey as she backed away from the kiss.

"No time like the present," said Cappie as he got out of the Jeep.

He met Casey on the other side of the car and the two of them walked hand in hand into Dr. Snyder's office. Casey's heart instantly began to race but she was doing everything she could to stay calm. Cappie was right, there was no use getting worked up over things until she knew for sure what was going to happen.

Casey signed in and the two of them took their seats in the waiting room. Surprisingly the waiting room only had a couple other mothers in it so Casey knew they would probably be called back to the exam room sooner than later.

Cappie looked over at Casey and could see the fear and nervousness written all over her eyes. He instinctively grabbed her hand and squeezed it tightly to let her know he was there for her. He would always be there for her.

"Casey Cappington," said the nurse calling Casey back to the exam room.

Casey continued to hold Cappie's hand as the two of them walked back to where she would get weighed. Casey stepped on the scale and was surprised to see the number.

"Wow, I've only gained three pounds," said Casey as she stepped off.

The nurse then took them into the exam room where she took Casey's vital signs and drew her blood.

"The doctor will be in shortly," she said as she left the room.

Casey turned to look at Cappie and was surprised to see him a little shaken up at this point.

"You're looking a little nervous there," said Casey.

"Just a little," said Cappie honestly. "This place just brings back all kinds of memories. It's hard not to feel a little emotional."

"That's true," said Casey nodding her head.

The two of them sat silently for a few more minutes until Dr. Snyder entered the room.

"Casey it's so good to see you," said Dr. Snyder as she shook Casey's hand and then turned to shake Cappie's. "How have you been?"

"Pretty good," said Casey. "A lot of morning sickness but it's starting to get a little better."

"Well that's good," said Dr. Snyder as she opened Casey's chart. "I believe I saw your friend Ashleigh yesterday."

"Yeah, she's pretty shocked over the news of having twins," said Casey. "But I think the two of them are going to be just fine."

"It's certainly a challenging road to take for new parents," said Dr. Snyder. "But Ashleigh and Charles seem like a lovely couple. And I'll be there to help them every step of the way."

"That's good," said Casey.

"Well then," said Dr. Snyder. "We're certainly not here to talk about their babies, we're here to talk about yours. Have you been getting any spotting or cramping at all?"

"Nope, everything has been pretty normal," Casey replied.

"I'm surprised the two of you ended up getting pregnant again so quickly after everything that happened," said Dr. Snyder.

"We're pretty nervous about this one though," said Casey as she glanced over at Cappie nervously changing positions in his chair.

"Based on your hormone levels you are certainly pregnant," said Dr. Snyder. "Let's go ahead and start the ultrasound so we can get a look at what is going on."

Cappie slid his chair next to the exam table as Casey positioned herself to have the ultrasound done. Cappie took Casey's hand as Dr. Snyder squeezed the gel on Casey's stomach. This was it. It was the moment both of them had waited for.

Dr. Snyder took several minutes moving the head around. Both Casey and Cappie were tense the entire time, waiting for her to say something.

"It's really hard to see," Dr. Snyder finally said. "But I've magnified it as much as I could."

She pointed to a small dot on the ultrasound screen.

"Is that, um, the baby?" Cappie asked as he swallowed a lump in his throat.

"Sure is," Dr. Snyder replied.

"And it's in the right place?" Casey asked.

"It's right in the uterus where it's supposed to be," said Dr. Snyder. "Everything looks just fine."

It was with those words that Casey lost control of her emotions. She began to cry and felt the weight of the world was lifted off of her shoulders.

"You heard that babe," said Cappie wiping the tears off her cheeks. "Everything is going to be OK."

Casey just shook her head yes as Cappie turned back to Dr. Snyder.

"There is only one baby in there right?" he asked.

Dr. Snyder let out a small laugh. "From what I can see there is only one baby in there," she replied.

"OK good," said Cappie with a sigh. "I don't know how we and the Thompsons would be able to handle two sets of twins at the same time."

Cappie turned his gaze back down to Casey.

"Are you OK honey?" he asked.

"Yeah," Casey replied as she tried to stop crying. "I'm just so relieved that the baby is not stuck somewhere where it shouldn't be."

"We'll be able to get a better idea on how things are going at your next appointment," said Dr. Snyder wiping the gel off of Casey's stomach. "I'll want to do another ultrasound in six to eight weeks."

"OK," said Casey as she sat up and wiped the rest of the tears off of her face.

"So do you have an idea about how far along she is?" Cappie asked.

"My educated guess would be about six weeks," Dr. Snyder replied.

"Sounds good," said Cappie.

"Now Casey," said Dr. Snyder with a serious expression on her face. "I know that things look good now but I do have to warn you that with everything that happened with the last pregnancy you are considered to be a high risk pregnancy."

"What does that mean?" Casey asked as the smile faded off her face.

"It's unlikely but possible that you could start bleeding again since the structures on the right side of your uterus are weaker with the surgery you had," Dr. Snyder replied.

"Well that doesn't sound good," said Cappie.

"As I said, it is unlikely," said Dr. Snyder. "But I want to play it safe. That means we'll probably do a few more ultrasounds, run a few more tests and keep an eye on you a little closer than we did with your first baby."

"OK," said Casey softly as she nodded her head.

"Let's go out and make your next appointment for six weeks from now," said Dr. Snyder walking towards the door.

Cappie and Casey followed her out to the secretary's desk and scheduled the next appointment.

"Call me if you have any questions or anything changes," said Dr. Snyder.

"I will," Casey replied as her and Cappie walked out the door.

As soon as Casey got into the Jeep she once again broke down crying. Cappie immediately wrapped his arms around her as soon as he got into the driver's side.

"Ev-everything was so good," said Casey through her tears.

"I know," said Cappie as he stroked the back of her hair.

Casey backed away from him about a minute later. She took several deep breaths to try and calm herself down.

"I-I was so relieved when she said the baby looked fine," said Casey as she wiped the tears off of her cheeks. "But then she had to go and start talking about my pregnancy being high risk and all that tension came right back."

"No, no," said Cappie. "We can't let that happen. It's not good for the baby or for you to be so stressed out. At this point there is nothing you can do except be as healthy as you can be."

"I feel like I have to be doing something," said Casey as she began to tear up again.

Cappie then put his hand on the back of Casey's neck and pulled her against him for an aggressive and passionate kiss.

"What was that for?" Casey asked as he backed away.

"First, to prevent you from crying again," said Cappie. "And second to let you know that you are not alone in this thing. I'm just as worried as you are. But worrying and being nervous isn't going to get us anywhere. I love you more than anything in the entire world. We've gotten through a surprise pregnancy, our child almost dying and you almost dying. I think that shows that the two of us can get through anything. And we'll get through this and at the end we're going to have a beautiful new baby to love and cherish for the rest of our lives."

"Why do you always say the most perfect things?" Casey asked as she leaned closer to Cappie.

"Because I have my perfect woman to say them too," said Cappie with a smile as the two of them shared a quick kiss.

Casey rolled her eyes as she backed away.

"I wouldn't say I'm anywhere near perfect," she said. "But I am going to try really hard to not be so stressed out about things. We got through the first hurdle in knowing that the baby is in the right place and is OK for now--"

"Which means we can go home and celebrate with some ice cream," interrupted Cappie.

"Are you serious?" Casey asked.

"Of course," Cappie replied. "You're the one who said we could celebrate with ice cream once we got good news. And we got good news that as of right now the baby is fine."

"Yeah, you're right," said Casey

"So what do you say?" Cappied asked looking at her with a smile on his face.

"Sure," she replied. "Let's celebrate with some ice cream."

Cappie's smile grew at Casey's response as he began driving back to the house. He could tell Casey was really trying to be positive about things and he really appreciated her for doing that. It was hard for him to always try to see the positive in things but he did it for her. He knew that the two of them wouldn't be half as strong as they are if he was as pessimistic as she was. But he was true with everything he said to her. He really felt like everything was going to be fine with the baby and he really did love her more than anything in the entire world. And he was sure that love would get them through anything.

* * *

**_A/N: Hope you guys liked how this chapter turned out! Please review.....you know I love reading them :0)_**

**_So the ratings for the show last week decreased just a little.....BUT according to the creator of the show we are still OK with the ratings. He thinks that a fourth season is very likely if we can keep the ratings around the same number next week! So everyone watch and keep your fingers crossed for good news next week!_**

**_And bettakappa....I wouldn't worry about C/C breaking up anytime soon. The writers would be complete idiots for doing that....lol. But I think they have to keep the drama/angst alive in the show so that's why they are promoting all these troubles between C/C._**


	117. Baby Blues

BABY BLUES

It had been a little over a month since each of the couples had their doctor's appointments. Beaver and Cappie were kept very busy with getting the new restaurant opened. They were very eager to get the place up and running as quickly as possible. Beaver found a great location about twenty minutes north of where they lived. The place didn't need a whole lot of renovation since there was a restaurant previously in the building. The kitchen had pretty much everything they needed and the dining area just needed some cosmetic changes to make the place look more appealing. Several newspapers and media outlets around town were already buzzing about the new restaurant and the boys were very excited things were going so well.

Ashleigh quit her job and was now helping out more with the new restaurant. She and Casey were in charge of hiring and training the staff to help run the restaurant. They planned the grand opening for Saturday August 4th, a little over two years after their first restaurant was opened.

It was the Thursday before the grand opening. Cappie and Beaver were at the restaurant going over some last minute odds and ends while Casey and Ashleigh were at Casey's house putting together the menus and table cards. Cadence was in the living room watching The Little Mermaid DVD which gave the girls much needed time to fix up the menus.

"Look at this Case," said Ashleigh standing and lifting up her shirt to expose her stomach. "I am huge already and I'm starting to get stretch marks!"

"Well two babies is a lot for your small body to handle," said Casey. "Besides, I swear I look as big as you right now with just one baby."

"Yeah but I read with second pregnancies you tend to show earlier because all your muscles and ligaments are already stretched out from the first pregnancy," said Ashleigh.

"Thanks Dr. Ashleigh," said Casey with a small laugh.

"So how have things been going with you?" said Ashleigh as she sat back down and began filling the menus again. "Cappie told me you are still kind of stressing over the high risk pregnancy thing."

"I am really trying my hardest to stay as calm as I can," said Casey. "I've started doing yoga a few times a week, getting pregnancy massages and even doing some music relaxation techniques."

"Wow," said Ashleigh. "So are they working?"

"Sure, when I'm doing them," said Casey. "I've come to realize that as long as I keep myself busy and not think about the pregnancy then I'm OK. It's when I start thinking about it, like now, that I start getting worked up."

"Oh, sorry for bringing it up," said Ashleigh.

"It's OK Ash," Casey replied. "It's a big part of our lives now and hard not to bring it up. Is Beaver feeling any better about having twins?"

"You know, I think he's even more excited than I am at this point," said Ashleigh with a small laugh. "He's constantly on the computer looking up the most high tech strollers and baby swings and all kinds of other crazy things."

"Well I'm really glad he is more excited about things now," said Casey. "So have you guys thought about any names yet?"

"Beaver has his heart set on doing like a theme like you guys have," said Ashleigh. "But he can't really come up with anything. I guess it really just depends on if we're having girls, boys or a girl and a boy though."

"You could have rhyming names like Evan and Kevin," said Casey with a smirk.

"First of all, I will not name one of my children after your ex-boyfriend," said Ashleigh. "And secondly, that sounds completely lame. I can see myself calling one of them and having both of them come because they can't tell whose name I called."

"OK, good point," said Casey. "What about names that go together then? Like Faith and Hope."

Ashleigh glared at Casey.

"What?" Casey asked.

"That sounds even lamer than the rhyming names," said Ashleigh. "I would think each of my kids would want to be unique, even if they are twins."

"I guess you have a point," said Casey.

"And what about you?" Ashleigh asked. "Have you and Cappie thought of any names?"

"No, we haven't even talked about it," said Casey. "But we'll probably have a short list to pick from once we find out if it is a boy or a girl. There aren't a whole lot of names that start with the letters 'C' and 'A' out there."

"Oh, if it's a boy you should so name him Calvin!" said Ashleigh. "How cute would that be?"

Casey glared at Ashleigh this time.

"Just as you don't want to name your child after my ex-boyfriend, I don't have any interest in naming my child after your gay best guy friend," said Casey with a chuckle.

"Hey, I'm just trying to help," said Ashleigh.

"I know," Casey replied. "I don't know, I was even thinking about not knowing the gender of the baby this time. It may be more fun to be surprised."

"No way I could do that," said Ashleigh. "I'm finding out as soon as the doctor tells me we can."

"Don't you go back to her soon?" Casey asked.

"Yeah, next week," Ashleigh replied. "But I still think it's too early to find out the gender. It's more for just a routine appointment."

"I go the week after," said Casey. "And hopefully we'll have another successful ultrasound which will help ease my fears a little bit more."

"Isn't that when Calvin and Heath's party is?" Ashleigh asked.

"Yeah, my appointment is on a Friday," Casey replied. "And then we're going to head up to Detroit on Saturday for the party."

"Ma-ma, where da-da?" Cadence asked as she came running into the kitchen from the living room.

"Daddy is at work," said Casey. "He'll be home later. Is your movie over?"

"Yeah," said Cadence in a sad tone. "I miss da-da."

"I know," said Casey lifting Cadence up on her lap. "Daddy's been really busy lately with work. But you have me and Auntie Ashleigh here to play with."

"Not same," said Cadence giving Casey a pouting face.

Casey sighed and looked at Ashleigh who was giving her a confused look.

"Cappie's been so busy lately," said Casey. "Working long nights and leaving early in the morning. I think he's seen Cadence like twice all week."

"No wonder why she misses him," said Ashleigh.

"Come on Cadence," said Casey setting her on the ground. "Let's go play with your ball."

Casey took Cadence in the living room and began rolling the ball back and forth for a bit. But Cadence was just not as into it as she usually is when she plays with Cappie. Casey tried everything she could to take Cappie's place by bouncing the ball off her head and laughing like he did. Cadence laughed a little bit but it wasn't the same infectious and sweet giggle she gave when she was playing with her father.

"Any idea when the boys are going to be home?" Ashleigh asked as she came over and sat on the couch.

"Not a clue," said Casey looking at the clock with a worried look on her face. "But it's her bedtime soon and I don't think they'll be back before then."

"So let her stay up a little later," said Ashleigh.

"I tried that," Casey replied with a sigh. "But she just ended up falling asleep anyway and Cappie didn't even get home that night until close to one in the morning."

"Oh," was all Ashleigh replied.

"Snack!" exclaimed Cadence.

"Sure you can have a snack," said Casey standing up off of the floor. "I'll go get you some yogurt."

"No! Ice cream!" said Cadence.

"I don't want you having all that sugar just before bed," said Casey. "Yogurt is better."

"Ice cream!" Cadence shouted again.

"Cadence, lower your voice," said Casey sternly. "There is no reason to be shouting."

"I want ice cream," said Cadence as she began throwing a temper tantrum on the floor.

"If you're going to act like that then you're not going to get anything," said Casey.

"Ice cream!" yelled Cadence.

"Fine, you're not getting anything then," said Casey as she picked Cadence up off the floor and set her on the couch.

Cadence began crying loudly.

"You can sit here in time out until you decide to act like a lady," said Casey. "Big girls don't cry."

"Case, what's wrong with a little ice cream?" Ashleigh whispered. "Especially if it will make her happy."

"I'm trying to teach her that she can't always get what she's wants," said Casey.

"Da-da give me ice cream," said Cadence through her crying.

"Well daddy is not here," said Casey.

"I want da-da!" wailed Cadence.

"If this is the beginning of the terrible twos I'm not sure if I want to have this other baby," Casey sighed as she plopped on the couch next to Ashleigh.

"She just misses Cappie," said Ashleigh. "Cadence has always been a sweet little girl."

"Yeah, and she's probably tired too which is making her cranky," said Casey.

"I know," said Ashleigh sparked with an idea. "Why don't you call Cap on the phone and have her talk to him? It's better than nothing."

"Good idea Ash," said Casey as she got up to get the house phone.

She dialed Cappie's cell phone number. He answered after three rings.

"Hello."

"Hey Cap, it's me," said Casey. "How are things?"

"So busy and messed up," said Cappie in a frustrated tone. "What do you need?"

"Well I was just wondering if you—"

"Aw damn, why did you move that over there?" Casey heard Cappie talking to someone in the restaurant.

"Cap?" she asked.

"Sorry Case, I have to go," said Cappie. "I'll hopefully be home later."

"But Cap—"

"Bye," he said hanging up the phone without letting Casey get another word in.

Casey got a sad expression on her face as she turned off the phone.

"Everything OK?" Ashleigh asked.

"Evidently he's too busy to talk right now," said Casey as she set the phone down on the coffee table.

"I'm sorry Case," said Ashleigh putting her arm around her.

Casey leaned her head against Ashleigh trying not to cry. "I guess I'll just have to talk with him when he gets home," she said.

"Looks like Cadence wore herself out crying," said Ashleigh as she looked over at the other end of the couch where Cadence was curled up sleeping.

"I guess so," Casey replied. "I should probably go and put her to bed."

"Well since you're going to do that I'm going to get going back to my house," said Ashleigh. "I've got a couple of shows on the DVR that Beave won't watch with me so hopefully I can get those out of the way before he gets home."

"Nice," said Casey with a small laugh.

"I'll probably see you tomorrow sometime," said Ashleigh as they walked to the front door.

"I'll be around," said Casey giving her a hug. "Enjoy your shows."

"I will," said Ashleigh as she backed away from Casey and went out the door.

Casey stood there and watched Ashleigh drive off before shutting the door and going back to the living room where Cadence was. She carefully picked her up in her arms. Cadence opened her eyes halfway and looked up at Casey.

"Wuv you ma-ma," she said as she closed her eyes and snuggled into Casey's arms.

"I love you too sweetheart," said Casey as she carried her upstairs and put her to bed.

Casey tried to stay up and wait for Cappie to come home but sleep quickly overcame her and she went to bed. She woke to Cappie rumbling around the room around seven the next morning.

"Cap?" she said in a groggy voice as she sat up in bed.

"Hey, sorry for waking you," he said. "I can't seem to find my black jacket."

"I think it's hanging in the closet downstairs," Casey replied.

"Oh yeah, you're probably right," said Cappie as he stopped searching through the drawers.

"Cadence keeps asking for you," said Casey. "She threw a temper tantrum last night before she went to bed."

"Yeah, I miss her too," said Cappie solemnly.

"What time did you get in last night?" Casey asked.

"Like two this morning," Cappie replied.

"Why on earth are you up so early then?" Casey asked.

"Beaver scheduled inspections with the health department today at eight," said Cappie. "We've got to get over there and make sure everything is up to code before they get there."

"I thought Beaver told you he was going to hire out most of the help you guys needed," said Casey in a frustrated tone. "It seems like you're working a lot more with this restaurant than you ever did with the first one."

"I'm just doing what needs to be done," was all Cappie replied.

"So when are you going to find some time for your daughter then?" Casey asked. "She had the saddest look on her face last night. I even tried to play with the ball with her and she told me that it wasn't the same as when you did it."

"Everything will be fine," said Cappie. "Once we get the restaurant open things will definitely die down and go back to normal."

"I hope you're right," Casey stated with a sigh. "I'm even seeing less and less of you lately."

"Tomorrow is the grand opening," said Cappie. "We're almost there. I have to get going though."

Cappie went over and gave Casey a quick kiss on the lips.

"Any idea when you'll be home today?" Casey asked.

"I'll call you," Cappie replied. "I really don't know. Tell Cadence that I love her will ya?"

"Aren't you going to kiss her goodbye?" Casey asked.

"I could but I don't want to wake her up," said Cappie. "I'll try my hardest to be home before she goes to bed but I'm not sure if I can. We have a lot of critics and media people coming for dinner tonight so it could be a late one."

"Wonderful," Casey mumbled rolling her eyes.

"I'll call you later," was all Cappie said as he walked out of the bedroom and shut the door.

Casey laid back down in the bed as a few tears began to escape her eyes. She understood why Cappie was so busy but she really missed him. And she was really dreading having to tell Cadence yet again why her father wasn't around for the day. Casey was eventually able to dry her eyes and fall back asleep.

Cadence woke Casey up around nine. Casey tried her best to keep Cadence as busy as she could throughout the day. After the two of them got ready for the day Casey took her to the grocery store. Cadence loved riding in the cart while Casey shopped and always made a point to ride the mechanical horse after they were finished. After they came home and ate lunch Casey sat with Cadence and watched one of her favorite movies. After the movie it was time for Cadence's nap and a much needed break for Casey. She actually considered taking a nap also but opted to do some laundry and dishes before sitting on the couch and watching some afternoon talk shows. Cadence woke around four and Casey already had everything set up for the two of them to do some coloring.

"Why don't you make a picture for daddy," said Casey.

"Where da-da?" Cadence asked.

Immediately Casey wanted to kick herself for mentioning Cappie. Cadence had gone almost the whole day without wondering where Cappie was but she had to go and open her big mouth.

"Daddy is at work again," Casey replied.

"I go," said Cadence.

"No honey, you can't go to work with daddy," said Casey. "Come on, let's make a nice picture to give him when he gets home."

Casey pointed to the blank sheet of paper she put in front of Cadence and gave her a crayon. Cadence took the crayon and began to scribble and draw circles on the piece of paper. She then changed to a several other colors and kept busy coloring until dinner time.

After dinner Casey was playing with some dolls with Cadence when the phone rang.

"Hello," she said answering the phone.

"Hey Case," said Cappie.

"How are things going?" Casey asked.

"Very well," said Cappie. "The critics are all eating their meals right now so I got a few minutes to pull away."

"I think your daughter wants to talk to you," said Casey.

"Sure, put her on," said Cappie.

"Cadence, someone on the phone wants to talk to you," said Casey handing her the phone.

"Hi," said Cadence into the phone.

"Hi my princess," said Cappie.

"Da-da!" yelled Cadence.

"Yes, it's daddy. What are you doing?"

"Playing with ma-ma," said Cadence.

"Are you having fun?" Cappie asked.

"No," Cadence replied with a giggle.

"Now be nice," said Cappie.

"Miss you da-da," said Cadence sadly.

"I know princess," said Cappie. "I miss you too."

"Come home," said Cadence.

"Daddy can't right now," said Cappie. "But I'll see you soon."

"Now!" exclaimed Cadence.

"No, not now," said Cappie. "I love you and I'll see you soon."

"Da-da miss you," said Cadence again.

"I know," said Cappie realizing how much his absence was having an effect on Cadence. "Go ahead and give the phone back to mommy."

"OK," said Cadence. "Wuv you da-da."

"I love you too," Cappie replied.

"Hey," said Casey as she got back on the phone.

"Wow, I didn't realize how much she missed me," said Cappie.

"She really does Cap," said Casey.

"I wish I could get away," he said. "But with the critics here tonight and the opening tomorrow I just have so much to do."

"I understand Cap," said Casey.

"Shit, I have to get going," said Cappie.

"OK, love you honey," said Casey.

"I love you too. I'll see you later."

"Bye Cap," said Casey hanging up the phone.

After playing with toys for a little while longer Casey put Cadence to bed and once again tried to stay up until Cappie came home.

Casey was sound asleep when Cappie came home around midnight that night. He first took a shower and then made his way over to the bed. He sat on the edge when something caught his eye on his pillow. He turned on the bedside light and picked up the piece of paper that was on his pillow. He smiled looking at the colorful scribble on the paper. Casey wrote on the top of the paper 'To Daddy, From Cadence. I miss you.'

"Hey," Casey said softly and startled him.

"Hey," said Cappie turning to face her. "This was really sweet."

"I thought you would like it," said Casey. "I spent the whole day trying to keep her busy so she didn't think about you too much."

"I didn't realize how much she missed me," said Cappie. "I assume you probably feel the same."

"Yeah," said Casey with a small smile. "But I'm old enough to know what is going on. Cadence has just been so used to seeing you at least every night that she doesn't quite understand what is going on."

"I feel horrible," said Cappie setting the picture on the bedside table and laying down in the bed.

"You shouldn't feel bed," said Casey snuggling up to him. "I know that you're doing this for our family."

"Yeah, but Cadence doesn't," said Cappie with a sigh.

"Cap, she loves you more than anything in the world," said Casey. "You are like her favorite person ever."

Cappie reached up and turned the light off. He then wrapped his arms tightly around Casey.

"I love you," he said.

"I love you too," she said.

Cappie was exhausted and fell asleep very quickly. Casey also fell asleep quickly in Cappie's arms, something she had missed over the past couple of weeks.

Cappie was once again up early next the next morning. He met Beaver at the restaurant around eight.

"Well, we finally made it," said Cappie as he sat on one of the chairs in the dining room. "Today is the day."

"I really think all of our hard work is going to pay off," said Beaver.

"I agree," said Cappie. "It's going to be a busy day."

"I picked up the newspaper this morning," said Beaver handing it to Cappie. "We got a really good review from one of the guys here last night."

"That's awesome," said Cappie barely looking at the paper Beaver just handed him.

"You OK?" Beaver asked noticing something was wrong.

"I'm just really missing my family," said Cappie. "I really haven't seen them much the past couple of weeks. It's kind of taking its toll on Cadence."

"I'm sorry man," said Beaver. "I'm sure things will get better once we get this restaurant going."

"I know," said Cappie.

Over the next couple of hours the staff began to arrive and prepare for the opening. Around ten thirty several friends and family members arrived for the opening.

"Hey you crazy married couple," said Cappie as Evan and Rebecca walked in.

"This place looks amazing Cap," said Rebecca looking around the dining room.

"Thanks," said Cappie. "I'm really glad you guys could make it."

"Well unfortunately we have to leave after we eat," said Evan. "But we're here and that's all that matters right?"

"Of course," Cappie replied. "Take a seat and I'll have someone get you guys some drinks."

Cappie nervously looked at his watch wondering where Casey and Cadence were. They should have been there by now.

"Congratulations Cappie," said Mrs. Cartwright giving him a hug. "We're really proud of you."

"Thanks," said Cappie. "Glad you guys could come."

He directed Mr. and Mrs. Cartwright to a table and turned to look at the door as it opened. He had never been more excited to see Casey walk into the restaurant holding Cadence. Cadence looked very cute in a light blue dress with her brown hair in pigtails with curls flowing. Casey was wearing a similar flowery sun dress. They were both certainly the most beautiful women he had ever seen.

"DA-DA!!" screamed Cadence as she wiggled out of Casey's arms and ran towards Cappie.

Cappie picked her up as soon as she got to him and squeezed her as tightly as he could.

"Hi my princess," said Cappie kissing her on the cheek. "You look very pretty."

"I guess someone was excited to see you," said Casey as she walked up to the two of them.

"Sure was," said Cappie as he gave Casey a soft kiss.

"Ew da-da," said Cadence with a giggle.

"Come with me," said Cappie. "I want to show you something."

He took Casey and Cadence into the office.

"Mine," said Cadence noticing her picture was hanging up in front of the desk.

"Yes, that's yours," said Cappie. "Daddy has it there so he can think of you every time he is here at work."

"That's sweet Cap," said Casey.

"I'm so happy to have you two here," said Cappie.

"Eat!" said Cadence.

"Yes," said Cappie with a laugh. "Let's go and get something to eat."

Casey and Cadence joined Ashleigh, Rebecca and Evan at their table as Cappie went to greet some of the first customers to the restaurant.

Casey and Cadence didn't see much of Cappie during lunch as he and Beaver were busy with things around the restaurant. They were able to flag him down right before they were leaving.

"The food was great Cap," said Casey. "We're going to get going though to let some other customers have our table."

"OK," said Cappie giving Casey a hug.

"Da-da go home?" asked Cadence.

"No, I have to stay here," said Cappie.

"I sad," said Cadence with a very sad face.

Cappie picked her up out of the highchair and kissed her on the cheek.

"Don't be sad," said Cappie. "I love you very much and I promise you and I will have some play time very soon."

Cadence just wrapped her arms around Cappie's neck tightly.

"Come on sweetie," said Casey trying to take Cadence from Cappie. "Daddy has to get back to work."

"No," said Cadence gripping Cappie tighter.

"I'll walk her out to the car," said Cappie trying to avoid a scene in the restaurant.

He followed Casey out to the car still carrying Cadence.

"Princess, daddy is going to put you in your car seat now," said Cappie as they got to the car.

Cadence allowed Cappie to put her in the car seat.

"Bye bye," said Cappie leaning down and giving Cadence a kiss.

"No!" screamed Cadence. "Da-da!"

"Daddy has to go back to work," said Casey.

"Da-da," whined Cadence as she was about to cry.

Cappie stood there unsure of what to do. Seeing his daughter cry was breaking his heart.

"I don't know what to do," said Cappie.

"She'll be OK," said Casey. "She's due for a nap and cranky."

Cadence reached her arms out towards Cappie as the tears streamed down her face. Cappie leaned in and gave her another kiss. Cadence continued to cry as Cappie shut the door and leaned against it.

"It's alright," said Casey standing in front of him. "I'll get her down for a nap and she should be OK from there."

"How did things get like this?" Cappie asked.

"Try not to worry about it honey," said Casey. "You have a restaurant opening to tend to."

"It really is nowhere near important compared to what I'm feeling right now," said Cappie. "I just want to be with you guys."

"Cap! I need you in here!" Beaver yelled out to him.

"Guess that's my cue," said Cappie.

"I love you," said Casey giving him a kiss. "Cadence and I will be fine. You do what you need to do."

"Love you too," said Cappie as he slowly began walking back towards the restaurant, still hearing the cries of his daughter in the car.

Casey watched him go into the building and then got into the car with Cadence still wailing in the back.

It was very tough for Casey to get Cadence to calm down and take her nap but Cadence eventually fell asleep. She was able to keep her occupied with dinner and some movies until she went to bed for the night. Casey went to bed early that night exhausted both mentally and physically. She was really hoping things would die down soon with the restaurant. But she knew it was still going to be a week or two before that happened since today was just the opening of it.

Casey woke up around nine the next morning to Cadence calling her name on the baby monitor.

"Let me," Casey heard Cappie say next to her as he climbed out of bed.

"Wait, what are you doing here?" Casey asked. "Shouldn't you be at work?"

Cappie ignored Casey as he went into Cadence's room.

"Da-da!" Casey heard her scream into the baby monitor as soon as she saw Cappie.

Cappie picked her up out of the crib and brought her back into the bedroom.

"I have a surprise for you two," he said getting back into bed and setting Cadence between him and Casey. "Daddy is not going into work today."

"Really?" Casey asked in a surprised tone.

"Yay!" Cadence exclaimed.

"Yes," said Cappie. "I told Beaver I couldn't stand to have another day away from the beautiful women in my life so Ashleigh is going to take my place at the restaurant today and I'm all yours."

Cadence climbed up on Cappie and wrapped her arms around him tightly.

"Wuv you," she said planting a very wet kiss on his cheek.

"So," said Cappie setting Cadence in his lap and wrapping his arms around her. "I was thinking the three of us could go to the zoo today."

"See animals!" said Cadence.

"Yes, we can go see the animals," said Cappie with a smile on his face.

He glanced over at Casey who also had a smile on her face.

"Welcome home daddy," she said as she leaned over and gave him a kiss.

"I'm right where I need to be," Cappie replied as he took both of his girls into his arms and squeezed them tightly.

* * *

_**A/N: Awww....so nothing too exciting in this chapter but just a little fluff I came up with trying to develop Cadence's character a little bit more. She's sure pretty attached to Cappie isn't she? LoL....such a daddy's girl :0) Next chapter is another doctor's appointment for Cappie and Casey and Heath and Calvin's party.**_

_**And make sure everyone watches the show tomorrow! With good ratings we could very well get the OK for a new season this coming week! Let's keep our fingers crossed :0)**_


	118. Moments

MOMENTS

The first week of the restaurant being open was a complete success. Beaver picked a good location which brought in several customers who had never been to the first restaurant. Managing both restaurants was a little more challenging. Often times Cappie would be at one of the restaurants while Beaver would be at the other. But after what happened leading up to the new restaurant opening Cappie made sure he had plenty of time for Casey and Cadence.

It was the day of Casey's second doctor's appointment. Cappie was upstairs getting Cadence ready for the day when Ashleigh arrived.

"Thank you so much for watching Cadence while we go to the doctor Ash," said Casey. "I'll be sure to repay the favor once your little ones are born."

"You better," said Ashleigh with a laugh.

"So how was your doctor's appointment last week?" Casey asked.

"It went fine," said Ashleigh. "Dr. Snyder said that they babies are doing well."

"Were you able to find out the gender of the babies?" Casey asked.

"No," Ashleigh replied. "But she did give us an estimate on the due date."

"Ooo tell me, tell me!" said Casey excitedly.

"Well she said that I'm technically due in the beginning of February," said Ashleigh. "But twins usually are born before their due date so she said I could probably expect them to come sometime in the middle of January. I told the doctor that as long as I can get through the holidays I'll be a happy girl."

"I'm sure you would," said Casey with a small laugh. "And how is Beaver? I feel like I haven't seen him in a while."

"Busy with the restaurant stuff as usual," Ashleigh replied. "He did go to the doctor about his ankle and they finally took the cast off. He's now in a walking boot which I guess does something to protect the ankle."

"Sounds fancy," said Casey. "How long does he have to wear that for?"

"Another few weeks," Ashleigh replied. "The doctor wasn't really specific with it."

"Well at least he doesn't have to hop around anymore," said Casey. "I bet that was getting tiresome for him."

"Ashee!" exclaimed Cadence as she came running up to Ashleigh.

"Hey girlfriend," said Ashleigh bending down and giving Cadence a hug. "Are you ready for some playtime with me?"

"Yay!" said Cadence.

Ashleigh stood back up and Cadence immediately put her hand on Ashleigh's stomach.

"Fat!" said Cadence.

"Now Cadence that's not nice," said Casey coming over to her. "You hurt Aunt Ashleigh's feelings."

Casey hinted to Ashleigh to have a sad face. Ashleigh obeyed and gave Cadence a pouty look.

"See, Ashleigh is sad now," said Casey.

"I sowwy," said Cadence looking up at Ashleigh.

"It's OK," said Ashleigh. "Maybe playing with you today can help me get thin again."

Cadence just laughed as she ran into the living room to get her toys ready to play with Ashleigh.

"Thanks Ash," said Casey. "I'm sorry about that."

"Not a big deal," said Ashleigh. "I know I'm getting bigger. But you know eventually you're going to have to explain to her what is really going on."

"I know," said Casey. "And I'm tired of wearing these baggy clothes trying to hide it from her. Cap and I just aren't sure if she is going to understand."

"She's a pretty smart girl," said Ashleigh. "I'm sure she'll at least get an idea of what is going on."

"Did I miss something?" Cappie asked as he walked into the kitchen with Ashleigh and Casey deep in conversation.

"Yeah, Cadence just told Ashleigh she was fat," said Casey.

Cappie laughed.

"That's not funny," said Casey hitting Cappie playfully.

"I know, I know," he said trying to calm down. "But you have to admit that it's somewhat cute."

"I guess," said Casey. "But it just makes me realize more that we're going to have to tell her soon about what is going on."

"We'll handle it, don't worry," said Cappie putting his arm around Casey.

"Both of you just need to stop worrying in general," said Ashleigh. "Now get your butts out of here and to the doctor."

"Yes mam," said Casey as she grabbed her purse and followed Cappie out into the Jeep.

Cappie and Casey were sitting in the waiting room around twenty minutes later when Casey was called back to the exam room.

"Dang, I'm up to ten pounds now," said Casey as she stepped off the scale.

"Wow, you can't even tell," said Cappie.

Casey turned and glared at him.

"No need to suck up to me honey," she said.

The nurse finished up her vital signs and left the room. Dr. Snyder came in just a few minutes later.

"How are you Casey?" she asked sitting on her stool.

"I'm doing well," said Casey. "No more morning sickness."

"That's good," Dr. Snyder replied. "Any other problems?"

"Nope, everything is just fine," Casey said with a smile.

"Don't let her fool you doctor," said Cappie. "She really has been pretty stressed out since the last appointment."

"Is that so?" Dr. Snyder asked Casey.

"Yes," she replied glaring at Cappie. "But I have been doing a lot of relaxation techniques to help like yoga and massages."

"Well your blood pressure looks OK now," said Dr. Snyder looking at the nursing notes. "But we're really going to have to look at that because it can raise if you're under a lot of stress which is not good for you or the baby."

"OK," Casey replied.

"Let's go ahead and get you set up for the ultrasound now," said Dr. Snyder.

Casey laid down on the exam table as Dr. Snyder prepared for the ultrasound. Soon she put the gel on her stomach and began to move the ultrasound head around. Her heart began to race the longer Dr. Snyder was taking to say anything.

"Everything look OK?" Casey finally asked.

"Yeah, take a look at your bundle of joy," said Dr. Snyder pointing to the screen.

Cappie stood up to get a better look at the screen as Casey turned her head to look.

"There are the arms and legs and the head," said Dr. Snyder pointing things out on the screen.

"So everything is normal?" Casey asked.

"Yes, everything is fine," Dr. Snyder replied. "And I would say based on the measurements your due date is going to be the end of February."

"Is there anything she should be doing to help manage the stress?" Cappie asked. "Other than what she is doing I guess."

"It sounds like she's got a good handle on ways to manage the stress," said Dr. Snyder as she wiped the gel off Casey's stomach. "But it certainly wouldn't hurt to go out and get your own blood pressure cuff and monitor it at home just to make sure it stays normal."

"Consider it done," said Cappie.

"Please tell him that we don't need to take my blood pressure every hour because I can totally see him doing that," said Casey with a small laugh.

"No need to do that," said Dr. Snyder. "Once a day or once every couple of days should be good."

"OK," said Cappie.

"I don't know if you could help with this or not," said Casey. "But we're also preparing to tell Cadence about the new baby and I didn't know if you had any ideas on how to tell her."

"Cadence is still young," said Dr. Snyder. "So it's going to be hard for her to understand. Some parents will get a baby doll for the older child and use that to explain the new baby. It's going to be difficult because she doesn't recognize time so when you tell her the baby will be here in six months or in January she's not going to know what you are talking about. Try something like telling her the baby will come when it gets very cold outside or something like that. It's probably not going to be easy but she will eventually understand."

"Thanks doctor," said Cappie. "We'll try those things."

"You're welcome," Dr. Snyder replied. "I want to see you back here in another five weeks but certainly call me if your blood pressure gets high or any other problems arise."

"Sounds good," said Casey as she hopped off the exam table and followed Dr. Snyder out to make her next appointment.

True to his word, Cappie stopped at the pharmacy on the way home to pick up a blood pressure monitor. He wanted to make sure he could do everything he could to make sure both the baby and Casey were OK. He also wanted to make sure to keep as much stress off of Casey as possible also. He felt like it was his job to make sure everything was OK.

* * *

Calvin and Heath were relaxing in their living room when there was a knock on the door.

"Rusty!" exclaimed Calvin as he answered the door. "How are you?"

"I'm doing well," said Rusty as he walked into the house.

"Rusty it's so good to see you," said Heath giving Rusty as hug.

"You too," said Rusty returning the hug. "So are you guys ready for tonight?"

"We are so excited," said Heath as they all took seats in the living room. "It's going to be a fun night."

"Hey, where's Jordan?" Calvin asked noticing she wasn't with Rusty.

"Oh I dropped her off at the hotel," Rusty replied. "She was up late at a photography shoot last night and wanted to get a little nap in so she could be rested up for tonight."

"That's good," Heath replied. "Do you know has Cap made it into town yet?"

"Yeah, I saw him and Casey check into the hotel when I was dropping off Jordan," Rusty replied. "Beaver and Ashleigh were with them too."

"Are they both looking very pregnant?" Calvin asked with a small laugh.

"Ashleigh more than Casey for obvious reasons," said Rusty.

"I know dude," said Heath. "I can't believe her and Beaver are having twins. I was so shocked when Calvin told me about it."

"Yeah, I was worried for Beaver at first," said Rusty. "But Casey said he's really excited about it and embracing the change in his life."

"Beaver's always been one to rise to the occasion when he needs to," Heath replied.

There was a brief silence between the three boys. Calvin watched as Rusty shifted uncomfortably in his seat.

"Something wrong Rusty?" Calvin asked.

"To be honest," said Rusty. "I'm kind of nervous about something."

"What?" Calvin asked.

Rusty didn't reply. He just took a small jewelry box out of his pocket and handed it to Calvin. Calvin opened it and strangely looked at Rusty.

"I'm sorry Russ," he said. "But I'm already happily married."

"It's not for you silly," said Rusty taking the ring back. "I bought it for Jordan."

"Wow Russ! Congratulations!" said Heath.

"Thanks," Rusty replied shyly. "I'm just not really sure how to ask her though."

"Well we all know that Jordan is not really the mushy type of person," said Calvin. "I think you should just be casual about it. I don't see her expecting a big fuss."

"Have you guys even talked about getting engaged?" Heath asked.

"Yes, she was the one who actually brought it up," said Rusty. "It kind of took me by surprise but once she gave me the go ahead I bought the ring and here we are now."

"I think you should just go to the hotel, wake her up and ask her," said Calvin. "It will be sweet."

"That's not that romantic," Rusty stated.

"It may not seem romantic," Heath replied. "But Calvin's right, Jordan is not a super romantic. I think he's got a great idea."

"I really wasn't planning on doing this today," said Rusty. "I don't want to take anything away from you guys and your party tonight."

"I think it's a perfect time for you to do it," said Heath.

"Yeah, everyone is together and can congratulate you guys. We really wouldn't mind sharing the night with you guys," said Calvin.

"I don't know…" Rusty hesitated.

"Go," said Calvin sternly. "I'm kicking you out of my house to go ask your girlfriend to marry you."

"You're serious?" Rusty asked raising his eyebrows.

Calvin and Heath both just stared at him.

"Alright, I'm going," said Rusty. "But I'm not guaranteeing I'm going to ask her today."

"Just do it," said Calvin standing and walking Rusty to the door.

Rusty turned around and looked at Heath and Calvin standing in the doorway and sighed.

"You can do this man," said Heath.

"Thanks," Rusty replied as he turned back and walked towards the car.

Rusty arrived back at the hotel about fifteen minutes later. He sat in his car for a while considering what Heath and Calvin had told him. They were right, Jordan would probably be more nervous and shy if he asked her in front of everyone like he originally planned. Maybe in the privacy of their room was the right way to do it. He finally got out of the car and walked into the hotel.

"Hey Rusty!" he heard someone call out his name.

Rusty looked around and saw Cappie and Beaver sitting at one of the tables in the bar and restaurant area inside.

"Hey guys," he said walking over to them. "What are you up to?"

"We had a little crisis at the new restaurant that we had to take care of," said Beaver. "And decided to have a drink or two before getting ready for the evening."

"Where have you been?" Cappie asked.

"Oh I was just over at Calvin and Heath's for a little bit," Rusty replied as he sat down at their table.

"Wanna beer?" Beaver asked.

"Nah, I'm OK," Rusty replied. "Where are the girls?"

"Off chatting about pregnancy or something like that," Cappie replied.

"How did Casey's doctor's appointment go this week?" Rusty asked.

"It went fine," Cappie replied. "Everything is good, mother and baby are healthy."

"That's great, I'm glad," Rusty replied.

"Can I get you anything?" the waitress asked Rusty as she came over to the table.

"No thanks," said Rusty as she walked away. "I'm going to head up to the room guys."

"Are you OK Russ?" Cappie asked noticing something wasn't quite right about Rusty.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Rusty replied. "I'll see you guys later tonight."

Cappie and Beaver said bye to Rusty in unison as Rusty made his way towards the elevator and up to the room. He took a few deep breaths before sliding the key and entering the room. The room was pretty dark as Jordan had closed the blinds for her nap.

Rusty let the door to the room shut and felt his way over toward the bed where Jordan was sleeping. He just made it past the bathroom and thought he was almost to the bed when his foot caught on a suitcase and he went crashing to the ground. The loud noise woke Jordan up.

"Rusty, are you OK?" Jordan asked as she sat up in the bed and turned on the light.

Rusty just grunted. He landed right on his knee and it was really hurting.

Jordan got out of the bed and knelt down beside him.

"I'm so sorry," she said. "I should have put the suitcase out of the way."

"No, it's OK," said Rusty. "I guess it actually has helped me in what I came here to do."

"What are you talking about?" Jordan asked.

Rusty sat up and took Jordan's hand into his.

"As you know, when I first met you I fell for you figuratively and literally," Rusty began.

The both left out a nervous chuckle.

"And certainly I've proved today that I just keep falling for you," continued Rusty. "I fall for you all over again every time I see you Jordan. And even though my knees may hurt falling for you for the rest of my life, that's a risk I'm willing to take."

Rusty clumsily moved and positioned himself on one knee and the box out of his pocket.

"I love you Jordan and I was just wondering…." Rusty hesitated as they both smiled at each other. "I was wondering if you would make me the happiest man alive and spend the rest of your life with me. Will you marry me?"

"Aw Russ," said Jordan.

Rusty just stared up at her, waiting for her to answer.

"Well?" he finally asked when she didn't say anything further.

"Yes, of course I will," said Jordan as she hugged Rusty. "I love you too."

Rusty took the ring out of the box and slid it onto Jordan's finger. Jordan then helped Rusty stand up off of the floor. Rusty was still grimacing a little in pain but he didn't care. He was excited Jordan said yes and he was also excited that the proposal turned out better than he had planned, even if his knee was hurting him pretty badly.

"Did you have this planned all along?" Jordan asked as the two of them sat on the edge of the bed.

"Not really," Rusty replied sheepishly. "I had a little encouragement from Calvin and Heath. But I guess as soon as I hit that floor it made me think back to the first time we met and it just felt like the perfect time."

"It was perfect," said Jordan. "I'm so happy!"

"Me too," said Rusty as he leaned towards Jordan for a passionate kiss.

"Mmmmm, I would love to get a little frisky with you right now," said Jordan backing away from the kiss. "But we really should probably get ready for the party so we're not late."

"You're right," said Rusty. "How about a rain check for later tonight though?"

"You got it," said Jordan seductively as she gave Rusty one last kiss before heading into the bathroom to get ready.

* * *

Later that evening Rusty and Jordan entered the Lovelace banquet hall hand in hand. They immediately found their table with Cappie and Casey, Beaver and Ashleigh and Rebecca and Evan.

"There you guys are!" said Casey as they walked up to the table. "We were worried something happened to you."

"Well, something kind of did happen," said Rusty trying to hold back his smile.

Everyone at the table turned and gave the couple odd looks.

"Rusty and I are engaged!" Jordan finally blurted out.

Immediately Casey and Ashleigh both screamed and ran over to the couple and give them hugs.

"Rusty, I could kill you for not telling me," said Casey backing away from their embrace. "How could you ask my little sister to marry you without getting my advice?"

"This was just something that I wanted to do on my own," said Rusty. "Calvin and Heath were really the only ones who knew."

"What about mom and dad?" Casey asked.

"Well, yeah, they knew too," Rusty replied.

"Oh I see how you really feel about me now," said Casey jokingly as she turned to Jordan and gave her a hug.

"I never thought I would see it little bro," said Cappie walking up to Rusty. "But you have my full congratulations and I wish you guys nothing but the best."

"Thanks," said Rusty giving Cappie a hug.

"You guys are just so dang cute," said Beaver with a sniffle as he gave Rusty a hug.

"Now, now Beaver, no crying," said Rusty with a laugh.

"I will probably be pregnant when you guys get married," said Rebecca walking up to Jordan. "But I'll still be happy to be a bridesmaid anyway," she joked.

"Thanks, I think," said Jordan oddly as she gave Rebecca a hug.

"Congrats Rusty," said Evan shaking Rusty's hand.

"Thanks," was all Rusty said as he walked to the other side of the table and took his seat.

"This is just so exciting!" said Casey. "Yay for another wedding to plan!"

"I'll certainly need the help of my big sis," said Jordan taking her seat next to Rusty.

"You just let me know when, where, and what and I'm all yours," said Casey with a smile.

"Alright, where in the hell are Calvin and Heath?" Ashleigh asked. "I am starving and I'm about to start eating if they don't get here quick."

"Didn't you just eat like an hour ago?" Beaver asked. "And I thought you weren't feeling well earlier."

"I'm eating for three people now, hello!" said Ashleigh in an annoyed tone. "And I feel fine now thank you very much."

It was about fifteen minutes later when the lights dimmed and the DJ announced Calvin and Heath's arrival. The two boys walked in hand in hand. They were both dressed in Armani suits, Calvin with a red tie and Heath with a green tie. They smiled as everyone stood and cheered for them as they made their way to their table towards the front of the room. Heath took the microphone from the DJ as everyone sat back down.

"I just wanted to say thank you to everyone for being here for Calvin and I," he said smiling at Calvin. "For those of you who don't know, we got legally married last week and couldn't be happier. We've planned this night for all of our family and friends to just have a good time and celebrate our marriage with us. So let's get this night started with some dinner."

"It's about time," Ashleigh said rather loudly as everyone at her table glared at her. "What?" she asked. "I'm sorry if I'm hungry."

"You're always hungry," mumbled Beaver as one of the caterers dismissed their table to go and get food.

After dinner the DJ began playing music for everyone to dance to. Calvin and Heath were the first ones to take the dance floor.

"Dinner was nice," said Calvin as he wrapped his arms around Heath.

"Yeah, good choice with the prime rib," Heath replied.

"I saw Rusty and Jordan were pretty close during dinner," said Calvin. "I wonder if he ended up asking her to marry him."

"I hope so," said Heath looking over at Rusty and Jordan sharing a kiss at their table.

Evan and Rebecca joined Calvin and Heath on the dance floor.

"Congrats guys," said Evan as he began swaying back and forth with Rebecca.

"Thanks," Calvin replied. "Glad you guys could make it."

"I'm glad we did," said Rebecca. "All this excitement with babies and marriages and engagements that's been happening is fun to celebrate with everyone."

"Wait, so did Rusty ask Jordan?" Calvin asked.

"Sure did," Evan replied. "And of course she said yes."

"Aw, that's awesome," said Heath. "I'm really happy for the two of them."

"Looks like we'll have yet another wedding in the future," said Rebecca.

The song ended and the DJ announced it was time to cut the cake.

"Hope you guys have better luck than we did," joked Evan.

"I think we're good as long as Beaver stays away from the cake," said Heath with a laugh.

The two boys went over to the cake and several guests gathered around to watch them. The photographer snapped several pictures as the two of them took the knife and cut a piece of the cake. They then each took a piece and held them nervously in front of each other's mouths.

"I don't trust you," said Calvin eyeing Heath.

"That's probably a good assumption," said Heath with a smile as he smashed the piece of cake all over Calvin's mouth.

Calvin tried his hardest to do the same to Heath but only succeeded in getting a little bit smashed on his face.

"I win," said Heath as he wiped what little cake did get on his face.

"You just think you did," said Calvin as he grabbed the sides of Heath's face and gave him an aggressive kiss full of cake on his lips.

All of the guests laughed at the two of them as they began to wipe the cake off of their faces.

A few hours later all the couples were on the dance floor talking amongst themselves.

"Are you guys going home in the morning?" Evan asked Cappie and Casey.

"Yeah, we have to get back to Cadence," said Casey. "I'm sure she's probably missing us."

"What about you guys?" Cappie asked.

"I think we're probably going to stay another day," said Rebecca. "We both are off on Monday so it might be nice to relax and enjoy our time here."

"Hey, I heard about the new restaurant man," said Evan. "How is that going?"

"It's going really well," Cappie replied. "It's not quite as busy as our first restaurant but we're still getting a lot of business and making money of course."

"Of course," said Evan with a smile.

"Case, I don't feel so well," said Ashleigh as her and Beaver walked up to them.

"What's wrong?" Casey asked in a concerned voice. "I thought you were feeling better."

"I thought I was too," Ashleigh replied. "But all of a sudden I got this really bad nauseous feeling."

"Like having morning sickness?" Casey asked.

"Sort of, but not really," Ashleigh replied. "Can you come to the bathroom with me?"

"Sure," Casey replied following Ashleigh towards the bathroom.

Beaver and Cappie stood on the dance floor looking at each other awkwardly.

"Uh, wanna dance?" Beaver asked.

"Hell no," said Cappie with a laugh as him and Beaver walked back to the table.

* * *

Casey and Ashleigh sat outside of the bathroom on one of the benches. Ashleigh had her head in her hands.

"I thought all this sickness was going to be over with," said Ashleigh looking up at Casey.

"Ash, you're sweating," said Casey as she put her hand on her forehead.

"Oh god, do I have a fever?" Ashleigh asked.

"No," Casey replied. "So I guess that's a good thing."

"Oh no," Ashleigh said suddenly as she got up and ran into the bathroom.

Casey followed her as Ashleigh knelt in front of the toilet and began to vomit. All Casey could do was hold Ashleigh's hair back as she vomited several times into the toilet.

"Something's wrong," said Ashleigh finally leaning her back against the stall. "I have a bad feeling about this."

"You think something is wrong with the babies?" Casey asked in a worried tone.

"I don't know," said Ashleigh fighting back tears. "I just know—" She couldn't finish her sentence as she turned towards the toilet to vomit again.

"I'm going to go and get Cap and Beave," said Casey standing up. "We should get you to the hospital."

Ashleigh just nodded her head as Casey ran out of the bathroom and back in to the ballroom. She first went up the Calvin and Heath quickly.

"I'm sorry guys but Ashleigh isn't feeling well and I think we're going to take her to the hospital," Casey told them.

"I can take a look at her if you want," said Heath.

"Under normal circumstances I would say yes," said Casey. "But this is your party. I don't want you to have to play doctor on your special day. We'll just take her to the hospital, no big deal."

"OK," said Heath. "Metro is probably the best and closest hospital to here."

"Thanks," said Casey. "I'll call you guys later to let you know she's OK."

"OK, thanks for coming," said Calvin as him and Heath gave Casey a hug.

Casey then turned her attention to finding Beaver and Cappie. She found them sitting at the table talking to each other.

"Ashleigh's puking all over the place," said Casey as she went up to them. "I think we need to get her to the hospital."

"Oh my god," said Beaver as he immediately stood up and went running towards the bathroom.

"I'll say goodbye to Calvin and Heath," said Cappie.

"I already did it," said Casey grabbing his hand. "Let's go help Beave and Ashleigh."

"Hey, everything OK?" Rebecca asked as Cappie and Casey walked past her and Evan. "Beaver just ran out of here like his life depended on it."

"Ashleigh isn't feeling well," said Casey. "We're just going to get her checked out at the hospital."

"Tell her I hope everything is OK," said Rebecca.

"Yeah, and call us if you need anything," said Evan.

"Will do," said Casey as her and Cappie made their way towards the bathroom.

They went inside and Cappie helped Beaver get Ashleigh up off of the floor.

"She just keeps throwing up," said Beaver. "We've really got to get her to the hospital."

Beaver and Cappie carried Ashleigh out to the car with Casey following quickly behind. They were all hoping everything was going to be OK with Ashleigh.

* * *

**_A/N: Whew....it took me like forever to write this chapter for some reason! Well I was caught up with Olympics stuff like I said before but I also had a little bit of a writer's block I guess. Sorry to leave you with a cliffhanger! Don't worry, this one isn't nearly as bad as one I have for you in the next couple of chapters....haha. With the Olympics on again this week I'm not sure when I'll get the next chapter up so bear with me....LoL! I'm hoping Tuesday or Wednesday but we'll see._**

**_Is everyone excited we get at least another 10 episodes on Greek for the fourth season?!?! I was so excited to hear the news! Hopefully if the ratings stay good we could even get 10 more episodes but I'm happy with what we got for now. And I can't tell you how excited I am for the episode tomorrow.....looks like we're going to have some really great Cappie and Casey scenes!!!_**

**_Please review! They always put a smile on my face!_**


	119. First Kiss

FIRST KISS

Beaver, Cappie and Casey all sat anxiously in the exam room with Ashleigh on the exam table. She continued to vomit several times into the basin the nurses had given her. Cappie looked over at Casey and put his arm around her. She looked like she was about to cry and obviously very worried about her best friend.

They had been there about fifteen minutes when another nurse came into the room.

"I'm going to set you up on an IV Ashleigh," said the nurse as she began to look for the vein in Ashleigh's arm.

"Oh I hate needles," said Ashleigh looking away as the nurse began to poke her.

Beaver panicked next to her. He wanted so badly to hold her hand but the nurse was standing right in his way for him to get to her.

"It's almost over sweetie," was all he could say to try and calm her down.

The nurse hooked her up to fluids and began to walk out of the room.

"Any idea when we'll be able to see a doctor and see what is wrong with her?" Beaver asked.

"We are really swamped tonight," said the nurse. "I can't really tell you at this time."

"You guys do know that she is pregnant with twins," said Beaver sternly. "You better get someone in here soon because if anything happens to my kids—"

"Calm down Beave," interrupted Cappie standing up and putting his hand on his shoulder. "I'm sure the doctor will be here as soon as he can."

"I'll do what I can," said the nurse as she left the room.

"This is ridiculous," exclaimed Beaver as he swiped Cappie's hand off his shoulder. "Her vomiting like this can't be a good sign."

"Honey, calm down," said Ashleigh turning towards him in the bed. "I haven't thrown up for a few minutes now. Maybe whatever was wrong is OK now."

"Well I'm not taking any chances," said Beaver. "I want an ultrasound done, I want blood work done, anything to figure out what is going on. I'll even have them do that animal scan on you if they need to."

Everyone looked at Beaver with confused looks.

"What are you talking about Beave?" Casey asked.

"I don't know, I see it on TV all the time," said Beaver. "That circular thing they put people in to take a picture of the inside of the body. Like a horse scan or a dog scan, I can't think of the name."

"You mean a CAT scan?" Casey asked with a laugh.

"Yeah! That's it," said Beaver.

"Beave, I don't even think I can have that scan being pregnant," said Ashleigh. "It might hurt the babies."

"Well you can bet they are going to do about every test that won't hurt the babies or you to figure out what is wrong," said Beaver.

Over the next hour they all sat in the exam room still waiting for the doctor to come in. Ashleigh was able to fall asleep for about fifteen minutes but was woken up with the severe nauseous feeling and began vomiting again.

"I've just about had it," said Beaver tapping his foot nervously up and down on the ground.

"I don't blame you," said Cappie. "You want me to go out with you and ask what is going on?"

Before Beaver could answer there was a knock on the door and a doctor walked in.

"It's about time," said Ashleigh as she sat up in the bed.

"Well hello to you too," said the doctor. "I'm Doctor Blake. What brings you in today?"

"I am three months pregnant with twins," said Ashleigh. "I wasn't feeling too well earlier today but it passed and I didn't think much of it. But then this evening after dinner I began to just vomit uncontrollably and it scared me because it wasn't like the morning sickness I had before."

"Any other symptoms?" the doctor asked taking some notes.

"Casey said that I was sweating," said Ashleigh. "But nothing else that I know of."

"Go ahead and lay down for me," said the doctor as he walked over to where Ashleigh was.

The doctor began to feel around on Ashleigh's stomach. He then took his stethoscope and listened to various areas on her chest and stomach.

"I think we should probably do an ultrasound just to make sure the babies are OK," said the doctor taking off his stethoscope. "I'm going to go and get the machine and be back in a bit."

"Well that was not very productive," said Beaver rolling his eyes.

"Relax Beave, he's going to get the ultrasound machine," said Ashleigh really finding Beaver's concern more annoying than caring at this point.

"Ash, I think Cap and I are going to step out of the room while the doctor does the ultrasound and other tests," said Casey standing up and walking over to Ashleigh.

"Are you sure?" Ashleigh asked. "Because you can stay, I don't mind."

"I know," Casey replied. "But I know doctors don't like when too many people are around. Just have Beaver come get us when everything is done."

"OK," said Ashleigh giving Casey a hug.

"You'll be alright babe," said Casey hugging her back. "I'll be thinking of you."

"Thanks," Ashleigh replied.

Cappie hugged Ashleigh and Beaver also. The doctor was just entering the room with the ultrasound machine as Cappie and Casey were leaving.

Right as the doctor and nurses were getting the machine hooked up, Ashleigh began to vomit again.

"Nurse, let's give her some Phenerga for her nausea," said Dr. Blake.

"Wait, is that safe for the babies?" Beaver piped in.

"Yes, in small doses it is just fine," the doctor replied. "We're going to have a lot of difficulty doing this ultrasound if she keeps vomiting."

"OK," said Beaver relaxing back in his seat.

The nurse gave the medication to Ashleigh through her IV and they waited several minutes for it to take effect.

"OK, let's go ahead and get started," the doctor said as he squeezed the gel onto Ashleigh's stomach.

The doctor had the screen on the ultrasound faced towards him so neither Ashleigh nor Beaver could see it. Beaver quickly became impatient and stood up and went behind the doctor so he could see. Dr. Blake turned around and gave him an odd look.

"Sorry," said Beaver. "You weren't talking so I figured I would come back here and see for myself if my children were OK or not."

The doctor didn't say anything in return. He just turned back to the screen and continued the ultrasound.

It was a couple minutes later when Ashleigh became even more restless than Beaver had been.

"Will someone please tell me what is going on?" she asked.

"Everything looks fine," said Dr. Blake. "The babies are moving around and look as healthy as they could be."

"So whatever is going on with me wasn't caused by the babies?" Ashleigh asked somewhat relieved.

"Well that doesn't mean that the babies aren't causing whatever is going on with you as far as your hormones and things," said the doctor wiping the gel off of Ashleigh's stomach. "We at least know at this point in time that the babies are OK."

"Good," said Beaver returning to his chair next to Ashleigh. "What do we do now? One of those dog scan things?"

"Um, no," said the doctor looking at Beaver oddly. "I'm going to have the nurse draw some blood and we'll send it off to run tests to check for any infection and see if her hormone levels are off for any reason."

"How long will that take?" Ashleigh asked.

"It's probably going to be a while," the doctor replied honestly. "We have a lot of patients tonight. Let the nurse know if you begin to vomit again and she can give you some more of that medicine."

"OK, thanks doctor," said Ashleigh as he walked out of the room.

"While she takes your blood I'm going to go and find Cappie and Casey," said Beaver leaning down and giving Ashleigh a kiss.

Ashleigh waved goodbye as Beaver left the room.

Beaver searched around for several minutes before finding Cappie and Casey in the cafeteria.

"Hey, everything OK?" Cappie asked standing up as Beaver approached their table.

"Yeah, everything with the babies is OK," said Beaver motioning for Cappie to sit back down.

"Oh, that's such good news," said Casey as Beaver also sat down at the table.

"Yes it is," said Beaver with a sigh. "I'm just worried that something might be wrong with Ashleigh now. The doctor said she could possibly have some sort of infection or something."

"Well what are they doing now?" Cappie asked.

"Running some tests on her blood," Beaver replied.

"Let me get you a coffee Beave," said Casey standing up.

"Thanks Case," Beaver replied. "Just put a couple spoonfuls of sugar in it."

"I can do that," said Casey as she made her way towards the coffee bar.

"Cap, how did you do this when Casey was in the hospital?" Beaver asked. "I'm like going crazy here because there is nothing I can do to help her."

"The best thing you can do is just be there for her man," said Cappie. "Things are already looking good. Ashleigh is awake and we know that the babies are OK for right now."

"I know," said Beaver. "The doctor gave her some medicine to make her stop vomiting so she's at least feeling a little better."

"That's great," said Cappie. "I know throwing up is not fun."

"Here you go," said Casey as she gave Beaver his cup of coffee.

"Thanks Casey," Beaver replied.

"We should probably go back and keep Ashleigh company," said Casey.

"Yeah," Beaver replied as the three of them walked towards Ashleigh's room.

A little over an hour later the doctor came into the room with Ashleigh's lab results.

"How are you feeling?" he asked Ashleigh as he sat in one of the chairs.

"Better since I'm not violently throwing up anymore," Ashleigh replied.

"That's good," said the doctor. "We're probably going to keep you on that medicine for the rest of the night so you can get some sleep."

"Do you know what's wrong with her?" Beaver asked.

"While there really isn't any specific test for food poisoning," said the doctor. "Putting her symptoms and blood work together I'm pretty sure that is what she has."

"Food poisoning?" Beaver asked. "That doesn't make any sense. I have eaten everything Ashleigh has in the past couple of days and I feel just fine."

There was a pause in the room.

"Well, not everything," Ashleigh finally said sheepishly.

Beaver turned to look at her.

"While you were at work the other day I kind of had a craving for shrimp," she continued. "So I went out and got some."

"What did you do, eat it off the floor or something?" Beaver raised his voice a little.

"No, I got it from the grocery store," Ashleigh replied.

"And why didn't you tell me this?" Beaver asked. "Why are you hiding what you eat from me?"

"Because you're always commenting on what I'm eating," said Ashleigh. "I'm sick and tired of feeling like a pig around you."

Beaver was speechless, he didn't know what to reply. Cappie and Casey also avoided eye contact with their best friends. They had never seen Ashleigh and Beaver raise their voices to each other.

"Ashleigh can you give me the name of the grocery store you bought the shrimp from?" the doctor asked breaking the tension.

"Yeah, it is the Food Mart in Chicago off Grange Street," Ashleigh replied. "Why do you need to know that?"

"I'm going to give them a call and see if they have any other reported cases," he replied. "That way we'll be sure the shrimp is the source of your symptoms."

"OK," Ashleigh replied as the doctor got up and began walking towards the door.

"So when do you think we'll be able to get out of here?" Beaver asked before the doctor was out the door.

"I'm actually going to admit Ashleigh overnight," he replied. "With all the vomiting she has had I want to keep her on the IV fluids to keep her from becoming dehydrated with being pregnant. She should probably be able to go home in the morning."

"Wonderful," Ashleigh said rolling her eyes.

"I'll be back in a little bit once I get in contact with the grocery store and they have a room assigned for you upstairs," said the doctor as he walked out of the room.

"Well that's great news that it's nothing serious," said Cappie.

"Yeah, nothing other than my wife lying to me," said Beaver bitterly.

"It wasn't a big deal," Ashleigh argued back. "All I did was go to the grocery store and get some food. You and Cappie have both been unbearable these past couple of weeks with us. Yes, we're pregnant but that doesn't mean that we can't take care of ourselves."

Cappie turned and looked at Casey.

"I had no idea you thought I was being overbearing," he said looking at her straight in the eye.

"That's not what I meant," said Casey trying to defend herself. "I appreciate everything you do for me."

"Not according to your best friend," said Cappie turning to look at Ashleigh.

"Well I'm sorry for caring," said Beaver standing up and throwing his hands in the air. "Cappie told me that my main job is to care for you while you're pregnant because I can't really do anything else. And evidently I've screwed that up, much like I'm going to screw up the lives of our children."

"Beave, don't say that," said Ashleigh who was now on the verge of tears.

"You know what, I think we should get going," said Cappie standing up. "We'll be back at the hotel. Call us in the morning when you're ready to be discharged and we'll come get you."

"But I want to stay with Ash," said Casey.

"It's OK Case," said Ashleigh. "I'll be fine."

"Plus the two of us obviously have some things we need to discuss," said Cappie glaring at Casey as he walked out of the room.

Casey stood up slowly and went over and hugged Ashleigh.

"Sorry for throwing you under the bus," Ashleigh whispered.

Casey just gave Ashleigh a weak smile as she back away and walked out of the room.

Once the door shut behind her Beaver sat back down on the chair. He and Ashleigh sat in an awkward silence for the next few minutes, each of them unsure of what to say.

"So…." said Beaver.

"So…." said Ashleigh. "I guess I should apologize for not telling you everything I eat every day of my life."

"There's no need to get sarcastic on me," said Beaver.

"How can I not be?" Ashleigh asked. "You're basically mad at me right now because I didn't tell you that I went to the grocery store and bought some shrimp. Do you realize how dumb that sounds?"

"Well it doesn't sound so dumb when it lands you a night in the hospital," said Beaver.

"But I didn't have any control over that," said Ashleigh. "It's not like I went out and looked for some shrimp with food poisoning so I could leave Calvin and Heath's party early and go to the hospital."

"I know," said Beaver softly as he looked at the ground.

There was another small silence.

"Beave?" Ashleigh asked.

Beaver slowly moved his head to look up at Ashleigh.

"Why did you say that you're going to screw your children's lives up?" Ashleigh asked. "I don't understand why you would say something like that."

"Life is just so complicated Ash," said Beaver. "I feel like my entire life I've either done too much or too little with just about everything I do. And probably the same thing will happen raising our twins. I just can't seem to get things perfect."

"I wouldn't want to be with you if you were perfect Beave," said Ashleigh. "I love the fact that you care about me enough to want to know what I'm eating, what I'm doing and who I'm with. But at the same time you have to see how it can be a little overbearing."

"But how do I find that happy medium?" Beaver asked. "How will I ever know if what I'm doing is too much or too little? How will I know if I'm being too strict or too lax with the kids?"

"As far as I'm concerned there really is no way to know," said Ashleigh. "Part of this is my fault. I probably should have told you sooner that your comments about everything I was eating were getting on my nerves."

"You see, that's the issue," said Beaver. "How am I supposed to know if what I'm doing is right or wrong if people don't tell me?"

"Well I can only speak for myself," said Ashleigh. "And I promise from now on I'll make sure to tell you if what you are doing is too little or too much. But you have to promise me that you won't stop being yourself. I love you the way that you are and I wouldn't change anything about you."

"Really?" Beaver asked.

"Really," Ashleigh replied. "And when it comes to our kids, I know I can't really speak for them but I can guarantee you that they'll also let you know if what you are doing is right or wrong. It may be in the form of crying, but at least they'll let you know."

"Yeah, you're right," said Beaver with a small smile.

"Come here," said Ashleigh as she scooted over in the bed and invited Beaver in next to her.

Beaver climbed in and wrapped his arms around Ashleigh.

"You and I are a team," said Ashleigh. "Team Thompson."

Beaver let out a small laugh.

"And even though we'll be adding two new members to our team, we'll still be working together in being the best parents we can be for our children," said Ashleigh.

"So you'll tell me if I'm screwing up?" Beaver asked.

"Yes, I'll tell you," said Ashleigh as she snuggled closer to Beaver. "But I really don't think you'll need me to tell you much. You're really going to surprise yourself and be an amazing father."

"I like the way you talk Mrs. Thompson," said Beaver moving Ashleigh's head to look up at him. "I love you."

"I love you too," said Ashleigh leaning up to kiss him. "And no more fighting, It felt awkward, almost like I didn't even know what to do."

"So true," said Beaver with a laugh as Ashleigh leaned her head back down on him and began to fall asleep.

* * *

The car ride back to the hotel was silent. Casey could tell Cappie was a little upset with Ashleigh's remark. And truthfully, Casey was a little upset at Ashleigh for bringing her into the fight. It was something between her and Beaver. There was no need to bring other people into the argument.

Once they got into the hotel room Cappie went right to the bathroom and shut the door. A few minutes later Casey heard the shower water running and took the opportunity to get into more comfortable clothes for the night. She laid back in the bed and thought about the events of the day, hoping that Cappie wasn't as mad at her as she thought he was.

Around fifteen minutes later Cappie walked out of the bathroom in his boxers and sat on the edge of the bed while he dried his hair with the towel.

"Sorry," he began. "I know we should have talked when we got into the room here but I was afraid I was going to say something I would regret so I decided to take a shower to try and calm down."

"Why were you so upset?" Casey asked.

"Because Ashleigh basically told me that you think I'm smothering you or something," said Cappie. "It's kind of an odd thing to hear from you wife's best friend."

"Ashleigh was just trying to bring you and I into the argument so things looked better for her," said Casey.

"So what she said isn't true?" Cappie asked.

"Well, not entirely," Casey replied after a brief pause.

"How can you blame me for being overprotective?" Cappie asked, trying his hardest not to raise his voice. "We already lost one baby and I also almost lost you with that pregnancy. I'm not taking any chances this time. And I'm not about to apologize for loving you and wanting to take care of you."

"You have to admit you're coming on a little strong though Cap," said Casey. "You insisted that we bring the blood pressure monitor with us to Detroit and you made me take my blood pressure three times before we left for the party."

"I'm going to tell you again Case," said Cappie. "If it's an apology that you're looking for, you're not going to get it from me. I just want to do my part in making sure that everything is OK with you and the baby."

"And I understand that," said Casey. "I just think it's just a little too much. The doctor even said that my blood pressure didn't need to be taken every day but you still didn't listen to her."

"I just don't understand how you're not freaking out about everything," said Cappie looking up at Casey. "You were so worried and nervous in the beginning."

"I was," said Casey. "And I still am. But at the same time, I know my body and right now I feel like a normal pregnant woman. If anything comes up that is a concern you would be the first person I would tell. I appreciate your concern for me and the baby. But I think right now it's just nearing the point where I'm stressing out about it and that doesn't need to be happening."

"You know the last thing I want to do is stress you out," said Cappie softly.

"I know," Casey replied. "That's why I think you need to back off just a little bit."

Cappie didn't reply at first. Casey just assumed he was letting her words sink in before he responded.

"Case, do you remember our first kiss?" Cappie asked.

Casey got a confused look on her face as Cappie's question was quite off the topic they were currently having. But nonetheless she responded.

"Of course I remember," she said. "The night we first met at the Kappa Tau rush party."

"Nah, that was just a trial kiss," said Cappie with a smile. "I'm talking about our first passionate, breath-taking kiss."

"You mean the one in your dorm room?" Casey asked pretty sure that was the kiss Cappie was talking about but wasn't one hundred percent sure.

"Yeah, we had just got done watching a movie and you were about to leave and go back to your dorm room," Cappie replied.

"And why are we talking about this all of a sudden?" Casey asked in a confused tone.

"What is the one thing you always tell me that you remembered the most about that kiss?" Cappie asked.

"That you squeezed me so tight during it I almost lost my breath literally and figuratively," said Casey with a smile.

Cappie turned and took Casey's hand into his.

"Case, I hugged you so tight that night because I wanted to show you how much I wanted to be there for you. Ever since then I've always wanted to protect you. Even when we weren't together you knew you always had me to talk to about anything or just to come to for a hug."

Casey scrunched her eyebrows together wondering where Cappie was going with this.

"I guess what I'm trying to say is that I've never let go since that night we shared that kiss. And I'm not about to stop now. I can understand how you can feel that I'm overbearing but in my mind, I'm just being the good husband that I've always wanted to be for you."

Casey's eyes started to swell up with tears.

"All I can say is that I'll make a point to try and be less overbearing," continued Cappie as he squeezed Casey's hand. "But I've been so used to being there for you over the past six years we've known each other that's it's going to be hard for me to change. I just hope tonight I've made you see why I am the way that I am. And almost losing you with the last pregnancy has put my feelings to protect you into overdrive. I'm sorry for coming off a little too strong I guess but I'm certainly not sorry for loving you."

"Aw Cap," said Casey as she leaned forward and wrapped her arms tightly around Cappie.

Cappie returned the hug, making sure to wrap his arms even tighter around her, just like the night they shared that kiss. They shared the embrace for several moments before Casey backed away, wiping the tears off her face.

"I think I'm the one who should be apologizing for thinking you were being too overprotective," said Casey. "I'm sorry."

"It's OK," Cappie replied. "I'm just glad that you realize where I'm coming from now. I love you more than anything in the entire world Case."

"I love you too," said Casey as she leaned in and kissed Cappie on the lips. This one with much more love and passion then their first kiss ever could have been.

* * *

_**A/N: OK, I'm sorry for being a total slacker when it comes to updating the story :0( This chapter was just sitting unfinished for the longest time because I wasn't sure where I was going with it and I'm still not sure if I like it or not....LoL! But nonetheless, it's posted for your enjoyment :0) I'll try to get the next chapter up sooner than I did with this one. I guess when the show is actually on every week it's not as motivating to write so I'm sure the spark will come back in a few weeks when the show goes on hiatus again.....and I think it's going to be a long one this time....grrrrr.... But at least we have another 10 episodes to look forward to instead of the show ending in a few weeks!**_

_**Anyway, please review....my mailbox has been quite empty with review notices since I haven't been posting new chapters....haha. So hopefully I'll get several new ones from you guys with this chapter. I've got some cute moments planned in my head for the next chapter.....thanks for reading!**_


	120. Lasting Love

LASTING LOVE

Ashleigh recovered well from the food poisoning. She spent the night in the hospital and was released the next morning. The four of them drove back to Chicago where Ashleigh spent the next week resting in bed while Beaver waited on her hand and foot.

With Beaver tending to Ashleigh, Cappie was in charge of running both of the restaurants for the week. He was constantly running between the two of them, making sure things were in order. Casey stayed at home with Cadence most of the days and Cappie called whenever he could to check in on them.

It was around four in the afternoon on a Friday when Cappie called Casey.

"Hey honey," she answered the phone.

"Hey," said Cappie, sounding stressed. "I have to ask you a huge favor."

"What is that?" Casey asked.

"My hostess for the evening just called in sick and I don't have anyone to replace her," he said. "I'm already helping out the kitchen staff who is short staffed and I was wondering if I could talk you into coming in and helping me out."

"Why don't you ask Beaver?" Casey asked. "I talked to Ashleigh earlier today and she said she was feeling much better."

"I just don't want to bother him on his last day off," said Cappie. "He's coming back tomorrow and giving me a few days off. I would hate to make him come in."

"Well you know I would be happy to help," said Casey. "But what am I supposed to do with Cadence?"

"Bring her too," said Cappie. "We can set her up at one of the tables by the door. You can keep an eye on her while she colors some pictures or something."

"I don't know…." Casey hesitated.

"Please," begged Cappie. "I promise you'll only have to work during the dinner rush and you'll have her home in plenty of time for her bedtime. Plus I'm sure she misses me and would love to see her daddy."

"I hate how you always have the right things to say," said Casey with a laugh.

"So can I take that as a yes, you'll come?" Cappie asked.

"Yes, we'll be there," Casey replied.

"You are so wonderful," said Cappie.

"I know," Casey replied with a smirk. "I'll get things ready and be there in about a half an hour."

"Perfect," said Cappie. "Can't wait to see you guys."

"Same here," Casey replied. "Bye honey."

"Bye."

Casey hung up the phone and turned to Cadence who was having a snack at the table.

"Daddy wants us to go see him at the restaurant," Casey said to her.

"Yay! I see daddy!" said Cadence excitedly.

"Yup," Casey replied. "So you finish up your snack while mommy gets some things together and we'll leave soon."

Cadence went back to eating as Casey quickly changed into a nicer outfit since she was the hostess for the night. She packed a bag full of activities for Cadence to do and the two of them were off to the restaurant.

Things were starting to pick up when Casey walked in. She carried Cadence to the back and found Cappie on the computer in the office.

"Hi daddy!" yelled Cadence.

Cappie quickly turned around with the biggest smile on his face.

"Hey my favorite little girl," he said standing up from his chair. "Are you ready to help daddy out tonight?"

"Yup!" said Cadence as she jumped out of Casey's arms and into Cappie's.

"Thank you so much for coming," said Cappie as he kissed his wife. "You are the best."

"You're not too bad yourself," said Casey with a wink at Cappie.

The two of them stared at each other like no one else was in the room, each with large smiles on their faces. It had been a while since the two of them felt lost in a moment like this. Both of them could agree that it was an amazing feeling.

"Hey!" Cadence yelled interrupting her parents stare.

"Come on," said Cappie. "Let's go get the two of you set up out front for all the customers."

The three of them walked up to the front of the restaurant. Casey discussed things with the hostess she was taking over for while Cappie set Cadence in a booster seat at a small table near where Casey would be for the night.

"Now mommy and daddy have important work we have to do," said Cappie. "So daddy is really counting on you to be a good girl and color your books while mommy greets the nice people."

"OK daddy," said Cadence. "I wuv you."

Cappie stopped and looked his daughter right in the eyes.

"I love you too sweetheart," he said as he touched her cheek. "I'm sure you'll make daddy real proud tonight."

"OK," said Cadence as she gave him a thumbs up.

Cappie laughed as he took several books out of the bag Casey had packed and set them around the table for Cadence.

"Have fun," he said. "I'll be back a little later and bring you some chicken nuggets for dinner."

"Yummy!" said Cadence as Cappie turned towards Casey.

"You think you'll be alright?" he asked her.

"I'll be fine," said Casey. "It's Cadence I'm worried about. I'm not sure how occupied she's going to stay."

"I'll bring her some dinner in a little bit so that should help keep her occupied once she gets bored with the coloring books," said Cappie. "And if I get any breaks I'll come over and sit with her too."

"You? Get a break? Yeah right," said Casey with a laugh.

"A guy can try I guess," Cappie replied with a smile as he put his hands on Casey's waist.

"I guess I can't fault you for trying then," said Casey as she leaned in and kissed Cappie.

The kiss was short-lived and interrupted by one of the waiters calling Cappie's name and Cadence yelling "ewwwwwww" in the background.

"You should probably go," said Casey as she broke away from him. "Maybe we can continue this later."

"Of course," said Cappie as he gave her a quick goodbye kiss and went to help the waiter who called his name.

Casey turned towards Cadence.

"Why do you think daddy kissing me is so gross?" she asked.

"Boys are yucky," Cadence replied.

"Daddy isn't yucky," said Casey. "And he's a boy."

Casey watched as a confused look came over Cadence's face. The site made her smile slightly.

"Kissing is yucky," Cadence finally said.

"But you kiss mommy and daddy all of the time," said Casey. "That is not yucky."

Casey saw an even more confused look come over Cadence's face. Casey could tell her daughter certainly wasn't expecting her to come back with such witty arguments. She finally became defeated and went back to coloring in her book. Casey smirked as she turned to greet some guests who had just come in the door.

About an hour later Cappie startled Cadence by sitting down at the table with her.

"Hi daddy," said Cadence with a smile.

"I brought you some yummy dinner," said Cappie as he set the plate of chicken nuggets and macaroni and cheese in front of Cadence.

Cadence moved her coloring books out of the way and began nibbling on her chicken nuggets.

"So is mommy doing a good job?" Cappie asked as he looked up at Casey who was just leaving to seat some of the guests.

"No," said Cadence shaking her head.

"No?" asked Cappie. "What is she doing wrong?"

"She won't let me play," said Cadence sadly.

"Well maybe if you eat all your dinner I'll take you around with me afterwards to meet all the nice people," said Cappie.

"OK," said Cadence taking another bite of her chicken nugget.

"Thanks for bringing her some dinner Cap," said Casey as she came back from seating some guests.

"Not a problem," said Cappie. "How are things going?"

"Pretty good," Casey replied. "We're starting to fill up so I'm probably going to have to start a wait list soon."

"OK, well I have to get back to the kitchen," said Cappie. "Let me know if things get out of hand."

"I will," Casey replied.

"See you soon," said Cappie as he stood up and patted Cadence on the head.

"Bye daddy," she replied as Cappie walked back to the kitchen.

"You keep eating your dinner and let me know what you're finished," said Casey as she turned back to seating the guests.

Cadence actually took a while to eat her dinner which was a change for her as she usually was the first one done. But her daddy said she could go with him if she ate it all so she wanted to make sure she ate everything. She also ate slow because she watched her mom being so friendly to all the nice people and showing them to their seats. Several of the guests waiting to be seated waved to Cadence and she happily smiled and waved back at them, loving all the attention she was getting.

Finally she decided she was tired of sitting in the chair, she wanted to get up and move.

"Mommy!" she yelled to Casey.

"Hold on," said Casey who was busy writing down names of some guests who just walked in.

"Mommy!" yelled Cadence again ignoring Casey's request.

"I said just a second," said Casey turning to her quickly and then turning back to the guests. "Sorry about that," she said to them.

"Mommy!" Cadence continued to yell.

"Cadence April, if you don't calm down right now I'm going to put you to bed tonight without a bedtime story," scolded Casey.

Cadence was quiet just long enough for Casey to finish up with her current guests.

"Now," said Casey walking up to Cadence. "What do you need?"

"Done," said Cadence pointing to her clean plate.

"Very good," said Casey with a smile. "I'll be sure to tell daddy that you ate everything."

Casey was about to turn back to some more guests who walked in when Cadence began to shout again.

"Mommy UP!" she yelled.

"No, you have to sit there until I'm finished," said Casey. "Why don't you color a nice picture for daddy?"

"NO!" yelled Cadence.

Casey groaned and rolled her eyes as she wrote down the names of the new guests.

"UP!" yelled Cadence again.

Casey could tell Cadence was making a scene and was becoming a little embarrassed. More and more people were staring at them. She nervously looked around the restaurant to see if she could find Cappie but he was nowhere in sight.

"Alright," said Casey picking Cadence up out of her booster seat. "You can help me seat people."

"Yay! We play!" said Cadence clapping her hands together.

Casey set Cadence down on the ground and looked at her list for the next guest waiting.

"Barnes party of two," she called out.

"Hi!" said Cadence excitedly as the couple approached the podium.

"Well hello," Mrs. Barnes said kneeling down to Cadence's level. "Are you going to show us to our table?"

Cadence nodded her head. She had been watching her mom seat people all night. She knew just what to do. She took the two menus out of Casey's hand and began walking into the dining area.

"Right this way," said Casey with a small laugh.

"Here," said Cadence as she approached the first empty table she came to. Unfortunately, the table was big enough to seat eight people.

"Almost," said Casey directing Cadence. "But they are going to sit over there," she said pointing to a smaller table towards the back of the restaurant.

Cadence ran over to the table and set the menus down on it.

"Enjoy!" she said as she ran back towards the podium.

"Sorry about that," said Casey with a laugh. "She's new here and all."

"Aw, she's precious," said Mrs. Barnes as she took her seat. "We'll come back here any time as long as she's the hostess."

"I'll be sure to let the boss know," said Casey with a smile as she followed Cadence back to the podium.

"Next!" said Cadence as she grabbed several menus out of the holder.

Casey almost told Cadence she needed to put the menus down and go back to the table. But she looked down at Cadence looking up at her intently. She had the biggest smile on her face and was genuinely having a good time. That smile was all Casey needed to see to know that Cadence was going to be her helper for the rest of the night.

"Rockchester party of three," Casey announced.

She made sure Cadence had three menus and walked with her to the empty table for the guests. The guests took their seats as Cadence walked around the table handing each one of them a menu.

"One for you, and you and you," she said.

"Thank you," said an older lady who was sitting at the table. "What is your name little girl?"

"Cadence," she said bashfully as she tugged at the bottom of her skirt.

"Well you are doing a great job," the lady nodded as Cadence turned and went back towards the podium.

"Enjoy your meals," said Casey quickly as she followed Cadence back to the front.

Over the next two hours Cadence was having the time of her life. She loved all the attention she was getting from the guests. Several of them told her how cute she was and carried on short conversations with her. One of the guests even gave her a dollar for a tip and told her to put it towards her college fund. Cadence of course didn't know what he meant by it but Casey thought it was a sweet gesture.

Around nine Cappie was finally able to break away from the kitchen and head to the front of the restaurant to see Casey and Cadence. He stopped by a few tables on the way to make sure everything was going well and was a little jealous by some of the comments the guests had for him.

Casey was looking at the sheet in front of her when Cappie startled her by coming up from behind her and wrapping his arm around her waist.

"Several of the guests have told me that the hostess was the cutest they have ever seen," he whispered into her ear. "I think I may have to stay up here and keep these men away from my beautiful wife."

Cappie kissed Casey on the cheek as she let out of a small laugh.

"I don't think it was me they are talking about," said Casey.

"Daddy!" said Cadence wrapping her arms around Cappie's leg.

"What do you mean they weren't talking about you?" Cappie asked as he bent down and picked up Cadence.

"Daddy I help!" said Cadence excitedly.

Cappie looked at Casey who shrugged her shoulders.

"Have you been helping mommy seat all these nice people?" Cappie asked.

"Yup," Cadence replied.

"She's a natural," said Casey. "I hope you're not upset. She was starting to get cranky from sitting at that table for so long and was having so much fun helping seat people that I just continued to let her do it with me."

Just then a couple entered the restaurant to be seated. Cadence quickly wiggled her way out of Cappie's arms and grabbed a few menus.

"Watch her in action," said Casey. "They'll be going to table 34."

Cappie and the guests followed Cadence into the dining room.

"Here?" Cadence asked looking at Cappie.

"No, I think the table right over there is the best one," he said pointing to table number 34.

Cadence set the menus on the table as the couple took their seats.

"Enjoy!" she said as she ran back to the front where Casey was.

"Your server will be right with you guys," said Cappie who couldn't help but smile at his daughter's antics.

He turned and walked back towards the front of the restaurant.

"I do good," said Cadence looking up at Cappie.

"You did a great job," said Cappie bending down and giving her a high five.

"See, I told you she was good," said Casey.

"Certainly is," said Cappie standing back up. "I'm going to head back to the kitchen to help the guys out. You two still going to be OK up here?"

"Everything is fine," said Casey as she shared a quick kiss with Cappie and he walked away.

About an hour later Cadence was starting to get tired from all the running around she had been doing that evening. Casey wasn't sure how much longer they were going to have to be there. The only thing she could think of was having Cadence lay down in one of the nearby booths.

"Mommy, bed?" Cadence asked confused when Casey told her to lay down in the booth.

"Mommy and daddy will take you to your bed later," said Casey. "You can sleep here for a little bit."

"O---K," said Cadence as her eyes drooped slowly.

Within fifteen minutes Cadence was asleep. There weren't too many more customers for Casey to greet so she mainly just sat at the podium and watched Cadence sleep peacefully. She was almost falling asleep herself when Cappie came up to her around eleven thirty.

"Ready to go?" he asked.

"Sure," said Casey. "Are you going to take over for the last half an hour?"

"Nope, Roger is," said Cappie looking around for Cadence. "Where is she?"

Casey pointed over to the booth where Cadence was sleeping. Cappie smiled as he went over and picked her up.

"Daddy we go home?" Cadence asked softly, still half asleep.

"Yes, time to go home," said Cappie as Cadence snuggled in against his shoulder and fell back asleep.

"Don't you have to stay and close everything up?" Casey asked.

"No, Roger is going to do it for me," said Cappie. "I think I owe you a little time at home tonight after everything you've done for me."

"Great," said Casey with a smile as the three of them walked out to the cars.

Cappie put Cadence in her car seat in the Jeep as Casey got into the driver's seat. She followed Cappie home as he was driving the other car. Once in the garage, Cappie picked Cadence back up out of her car seat and brought her inside.

"I'll go ahead and put her to bed," said Cappie.

"OK," Casey replied as she followed him up the stairs.

Casey watched Cappie take Cadence into her room and then she went into their bedroom and changed her clothes. She was in bed watching TV when Cappie came into the room.

"That was certainly the easiest time I've ever had putting her to bed," said Cappie as he began to loosen his tie and unbutton his shirt.

"Of course, she was already half asleep," said Casey turning off the TV.

Cappie stripped down to his boxers and climbed into bed next to Casey. He let out a large sigh.

"I still can't thank you enough for helping me tonight," he said. "I don't know what I would have done with as busy as we were."

"I'm just glad everything worked out with Cadence," said Casey.

"She certainly was cute in the way she showed people to their tables," said Cappie. "Everyone I talked to said they loved the new hostess."

"Next thing you know she'll be serving the food," said Casey with a small laugh.

Cappie just smiled as he reached his arm out so Casey could cuddle up next to him.

"I'm so lucky," said Cappie squeezing Casey tightly.

"Why is that?" Casey asked as she snuggled into the nook of his arm.

"I don't think we could have a more perfect little girl," Cappie replied. "She's so caring and friendly and certainly loves attention."

"She sure showed that tonight," said Casey with a small laugh.

There was a brief pause between the two of them.

"When I first set her down at the table tonight she looked me right in the eye and told me she loved me," Cappie finally said. "And I know she's said it before. But tonight hearing it from her while looking right into her big blue eyes almost made me cry."

"Yeah, she's pretty great," said Casey. "It's a pretty incredible feeling hearing your child tell you that they love you."

"And to think we were almost considered terminating the pregnancy when you first found out you were pregnant," said Cappie. "Looking back it kind of makes me sad."

"Why?" Casey asked.

"Because we almost ended her chance to live life," said Cappie. "Looking back on it, the world would be completely different without her in it."

"We probably wouldn't be together if it wasn't for her," Casey stated.

"It's not just that," said Cappie. "Cadence makes me happy. Seeing her always brings a smile to my face knowing that she was created by the two of us. I know my life would be completely different if she wasn't in it. Hell, I'd maybe still be in college if it wasn't for her. She really has no idea how much she has completely changed my life for the better. I hope one day I'll be able to share with her how much just her being alive has effected me."

"Well she's daddy's little girl," said Casey. "And I'm sure she always will be."

"She will," said Cappie with a smile. "No matter how many kids the two of us have, she's always going to have a special little place in my heart."

"I think the first born child always does," said Casey.

"Your first love does too," said Cappie kissing the top of Casey's head.

"There's always been something special about the two of us hasn't there?" Casey asked.

"Sure has," said Cappie. "Ever since I saw you that night at the Kappa Tau rush party. I don't think my life has been the same since."

"There is no doubt in my mind that you are my soul mate," said Casey turning her head to look up at Cappie.

Cappie smiled as he stroked the hair out of her face.

"We sure have come a long way Casey Cappington," he stated with a smile. "I'm just as lucky to have you as I am to have Cadence. You guys are like the perfect pair for me."

"Well it helps that you are both a wonderful father and husband," said Casey leaning closer to Cappie. "I love you so much."

Cappie wrapped his arms tightly around Casey. "I love you too," he said.

They each leaned forward for a deep and passionate kiss. Cappie moved his hand to the back of Casey's head and ran his fingers through her hair while he kissed her. Casey reached up and grabbed the side of Cappie's face, pulling him as close as she could to her, deepening the kiss. There was no question in the love the two of them have for each other. The kisses, gentle touches and just cuddling in bed still sent chills throughout each time their bodies touched. In the six years they'd known each other, the passion had always been there, whether they were together or not. And finally the road of life brought them together. It's given them a beautiful little girl, with another baby on the way, along with a future of endless possibilities. Things were the way they were meant to be. And there is no question that a love like theirs will last forever.

* * *

_**A/N: Hey everyone! Sorry it's been another long wait for a chapter. Now that I'm making each chapter longer it's taking me longer to write them. I hope everyone liked this chapter. I felt a happy, drama free chapter would be good with all the drama this story has had lately along with all the drama C/C are having on the show. Anyone else kind of sick of them arguing about the future over and over and over again??? LoL! I think I've got at least another happy chapter to write before I have a little more drama so I hope you guys don't mind a happy C/C :0) As always, reviews appreciated! Story alerts and favorite stories are still growing....always nice to hear from new readers!**_


	121. All the Right Reasons

ALL THE RIGHT REASONS

About a week later Cappie woke up to Cadence making sounds through the baby monitor. He looked at the clock to see it was only five in the morning. It was his day off of work and he wasn't about to get up this early in the morning. Cappie yawned as he looked at Casey sleeping soundly next to him. He turned off the baby monitor so it didn't disturb her and headed into Cadence's room. Cappie found her standing up in her crib.

"Hi daddy!" she said excitedly.

"Do you have any idea what time it is sweetheart?" Cappie asked.

Cadence just shook her head no, not quite understanding what Cappie had even asked her.

"Well, it is way too early to wake up," said Cappie lifting Cadence out of the crib and sitting in the rocking chair next to it. "Mommy and daddy want to sleep some more."

"Daddy you soft," said Cadence as she ran her hand across Cappie's bare chest.

Yeah, he probably should have grabbed his shirt.

"How about I read you a story to see if you can go back to sleep?" Cappie asked.

"OK," said Cadence as she positioned herself in Cappie's lap.

Cappie grabbed a book off the nearby bookshelf and began to read it to Cadence. At first Cadence was showing no signs of going back to sleep. But mid-way through the book he realized she wasn't squirming around as much on his lap. By the time he finished reading the book she was sound asleep. Cappie picked her up slowly and set her down in the crib, trying his hardest not to wake her. Cappie slowly walked to the door, thinking he was home free when Cadence called his name softly. He walked back over to the crib and looked down at her.

"Daddy, I sleep," said Cadence as she hugged her blanket and shut her eyes again.

Cappie smiled as he brushed a piece of her brunette hair out of her face.

"I'll see you in a few hours princess," he whispered back.

Cappie stood there for about a minute to make sure Cadence had truly fell back asleep and made his way back into the bedroom.

He turned the baby monitor back on and climbed into bed. Casey stirred as he did this and turned to him with half open eyes.

"Where were you?" she asked softly.

"Cadence woke up," said Cappie.

Casey looked at the clock and sighed with a frustrated expression on her face.

Cappie smiled at her reaction. "Don't worry," he said. "I got her back asleep. Now you should get back to sleep too."

"Thanks Cap," said Casey smiling back at him.

Cappie reached his arm out as Casey found her usual place in the nook of his shoulder. Within minutes the two of them had fallen back asleep.

About three hours later Cappie woke up. He was surprised Cadence was still sleeping but he was going to take full advantage of the quiet time. He turned to look at Casey who was still snuggled on his chest. He scanned the body of the most perfect woman in the world to him and let out a little smile when his eyes landed on her stomach area. Over the past week Casey's belly seemed to double in size and it was getting harder and harder for her to hide it from Cadence.

With a little hesitation Cappie reached his hand over and began rubbing the large bump on Casey's stomach. The entire moment was somewhat surreal for him. After everything the two of them had been through, he wasn't really sure if he would ever have a moment like this again. He never knew how much children would have an effect on his life either. He always pictured himself child-like, never wanting to grow up. As much as he hated to admit it, Cadence was the reason he was almost forced to grow up. But that certainly wasn't a bad thing. He had actually come accustomed to the grown-up life. He loved his job. Working with Beaver was fun and care-free, never a dull moment. He loved his wife. Deep down he always knew Casey and he were destined to be together. And she was perfect in every way possible. And last but certainly not least, he loved his children. Sure Cappie junior hasn't been born yet but just as Cadence is special for being the first born, the new baby is special in his or her own way too. It's almost like the baby is a miracle, allowing him and Casey to beat the odds and have another child. And who knows, maybe they'll add even more in the future.

Cappie's thoughts were broken by Casey clearing her throat.

"Oh, hey, good morning," he said turning to look at her.

"You looked like you were off in another world," said Casey with a small laugh. "I think I looked at you for like five minutes before getting your attention."

"Sorry, just thinking about a lot of things," said Cappie.

Casey brought her gaze away from Cappie's eyes and looked down at her stomach. His hand was still rubbing it gently back and forth.

"Everything OK?" Casey asked.

"Yeah, everything is fine," Cappie replied. "I was just thinking about life and growing up and how far the two of us have come."

"Quite an odd thing to be thinking about randomly on a Saturday morning," said Casey returning her gaze to Cappie's eyes.

"I don't know," said Cappie. "I just looked down and saw how much you've grown in the past week and it got me thinking about everything."

"Good thoughts I hope," said Casey finding Cappie's current reflection of life somewhat odd but refreshing at the same time.

"Of course they're good thoughts," Cappie replied. "We're going to have another child soon. I couldn't be happier about it."

"Me too," said Casey resting her hand on top of Cappie's on her belly. "But I think it's about time we try to tell Cadence what is going on."

"I don't think she's caught on just yet," said Cappie. "You're still hiding it pretty well."

Casey looked at him and rolled her eyes. "Yesterday she asked me why I was fat."

"Oh," said Cappie with a small laugh. "I guess it probably is about time then huh?"

"We've talked about how we are going to do this," said Casey. "I think we're ready."

"Mommy," they heard Cadence in the baby monitor, just like she was waiting for her cue.

"That little lady has impeccable timing," said Cappie.

He kissed Casey and got out of bed.

"Are you going to bring her in here?" Casey asked as she watched Cappie put his shirt on.

"Yeah," Cappie replied. "No time like the present."

"OK," Casey replied sitting up in the bed. "Just make sure you bring her baby doll too."

"I will," said Cappie as he made his way to Cadence's room.

Cappie picked Cadence up out of her crib and grabbed her favorite baby doll before returning to the bedroom.

"Mommy!" exclaimed Cadence as she wiggled out of Cappie's arms and ran to the bed.

"Good morning sweetheart," said Casey picking her up and bringing her on the bed. "I heard you were up very early this morning."

"Daddy read book," said Cadence.

"Yes, and then you went back to sleep," said Casey as Cappie got into the bed next to her.

"Cadence mommy and daddy want to talk to you about something," said Cappie as he moved Cadence to sit between the two of them.

"Baby doll," said Cadence noticing the doll in Cappie's hands.

Cappie handed Cadence the doll and she cradled it gently in her arms.

"Do you like the baby?" Casey asked.

Cadence nodded her head yes.

"Mommy has a baby too," said Cappie. "In her belly."

Casey moved the blanket off of her to show Cadence her bump.

"Mommy fat," said Cadence with a giggle.

"No, mommy is not fat," Cappie corrected her. "Mommy has a baby growing in her."

Cadence turned and gave Cappie a confused look.

"I baby," said Cadence.

"Yes, but you're becoming more of a big girl now," said Casey. "You did such a good job last week helping daddy and me at the restaurant."

"Yeah, I big girl," said Cadence with a growing smile on her face.

"And as a big girl, you're going to get a new brother or sister," said Casey rubbing her hand on her stomach.

"When?" Cadence asked.

Cappie and Casey looked at each other.

"It's going to be a while," said Cappie as Cadence turned to look at him. "The baby will come sometime after Santa comes for Christmas."

Cadence turned back to Casey. She looked at her stomach and then up at Casey's eyes. She then took her little hand and began moving it slowly towards Casey's belly. She looked up at her mom, wondering if what she was doing was OK.

"It's OK," said Casey assuring her. "You can touch it."

Cadence rested her small hand on Casey's stomach and began to rub it. Casey turned to Cappie and smiled, realizing the touching moment they were experiencing.

"Baby?" Cadence looked up at Casey and asked.

"Yes, the baby is in there," said Casey. "Your little brother or sister."

"Which one?" Cadence asked.

"Mommy and daddy aren't sure yet," said Cappie moving closer to Cadence. "But once we know we'll be sure to tell you OK?"

"OK," Cadence replied, still gently rubbing Casey's stomach.

"You're going to be a great big sister," said Casey. "I think the baby likes you already."

"Yay!" said Cadence with a smile as she took her hand off Casey's stomach.

Cappie grabbed Cadence and brought her into his lap.

"So what would you like to eat for breakfast?" Cappie asked.

"Ice cream!" said Cadence.

"You can have ice cream later," said Casey getting out of bed. "How about some yogurt with the bunny rabbit on it?"

"OK," said Cadence as she slid off of the bed.

"Can I make you an omelet babe?" Casey asked Cappie as she picked Cadence up.

"Sounds great," said Cappie. "I'll be down in a few minutes."

Cappie watched as Casey and Cadence left the room and went downstairs. Once he knew they were out of sight he picked up his cell phone and called Beaver.

"Hey Cap," Beaver answered the phone.

"Hey Beave," said Cappie. "I was just calling to make sure you were able to get all those reservations and arrangements made yesterday."

"Of course," Beaver replied. "Everything is set."

"Wonderful," Cappie replied. "I think we've really outdone ourselves this time around."

"I couldn't agree with you more," Beaver replied.

"Alright man, I'll talk to you later then," said Cappie.

"Sounds good. Have a good day," Beaver replied.

"You too," said Cappie. "Bye."

Cappie hung up the phone and smiled. He loves surprising his wife.

* * *

"Good morning," said Ashleigh as she joined Beaver on the couch in the living room.

"Morning," Beaver replied giving her a small kiss on the cheek.

"Who were you talking to about reservations?" Ashleigh asked.

"Oh just one of the guys at the restaurant," Beaver lied. "Everything is taken care of though."

"Well good," said Ashleigh. "Because you promised me you weren't going to go into work today."

"And my promise is still good," said Beaver. "I am not going anywhere."

"So, anything special you wanted to do today?" Ashleigh asked.

"Nope, just spend the day with you," Beaver replied. "How are you feeling? I know yesterday you were pretty fatigued."

"I feel better today," said Ashleigh. "I was able to sleep better last night. But it's getting harder the bigger my belly is getting."

Beaver reached over and rubbed his hand on Ashleigh's stomach.

"Hard to believe there are two babies in there," said Beaver.

"Oh I believe it," said Ashleigh with a small laugh.

"Can I make you something for breakfast?" Beaver asked.

"Actually I was up around six this morning with a craving for yogurt and strawberries," Ashleigh replied. "So I'm not really hungry right now. You can eat something if you want though."

"No, I already had a bowl of cereal so I should be fine until lunch."

"So since we don't really have anything to do," said Ashleigh. "I was thinking we could start thinking about the babies."

"Ash, I'm always thinking about the babies," said Beaver rolling his eyes.

"Well, hold on," said Ashleigh as she got up and walked towards the bedroom.

Beaver sat puzzled on the couch until Ashleigh came out with a book in her hand.

"Casey let me borrow this book," she said sitting back down on the couch.

"Baby names?" Beaver asked. "Don't you think we're a little too early given the fact that we don't even know if we're having boys, girls or one of each?"

"Not at all," Ashleigh replied. "I think we should start now coming up with a few names we like for both genders so we can at least have a start on things."

"OK, makes sense," said Beaver as he took the book from Ashleigh. "What do you think about my idea of a theme?"

"Well I think it could be a cute idea," said Ashleigh. "But I'm really not sure what kind of theme we can have."

The two of them sat in silence and thought about it.

"I know," said Beaver. "Why don't we give them animal-like names? It'll fit perfectly with my nickname being Beaver."

"First of all, I'm not naming my children 'Dog' and 'Horse'," said Ashleigh. "And second of all, that theme only includes you. Where do I fit in the equation?"

"OK, guess you're right," Beaver sighed.

The two of them sat in silence for several more minutes. Eventually Beaver opened the book to see if looking through it would give him any ideas.

"Oh look," said Beaver. "There is a little section of twin names that go together. How about Harry and Larry?"

Ashleigh glared at him.

"OK, probably not a good example," said Beaver.

"That's almost as bad as Casey's idea," said Ashleigh. "She suggested Faith and Hope."

"Awww…." Beaver began.

Ashleigh glared at him again.

"Or not," Beaver quickly stated.

"I just don't want to give our kids bad names," said Ashleigh. "It's something they'll have to live with for the rest of their lives. I just want their names to be perfect."

"This was probably so easy for Casey and Cappie," said Beaver continuing to flip through the book. "Both of their names start with the letter 'C' so they only had to look in one section of the book."

"Hmmm, what do you think they'll choose this time around?" Ashleigh asked grabbing the book from Beaver and going to the 'C' section.

"Caden is a good name for a boy," said Beaver scanning the list.

"That is way too close to Cadence," Ashleigh replied. "I don't think they would pick that. Maybe Carey or Carson. Those would be cute."

"I think I like Callie," said Beaver. "And it fits well, Cappie, Casey, Cadence and Callie. If they are having another girl that is."

Ashleigh shut the book and turned to Beaver.

"OK seriously, we sat here to pick out names for our children and here we are picking out names for our best friends' child," said Ashleigh with a small laugh. "Something about that just doesn't seem right."

"Yeah, you're right," said Beaver also with a small laugh. "It's just easier to pick names when it's not your own children."

"True," said Ashleigh as she opened the book back up. "I really didn't realize how hard this was going to be. There must be over a thousand different names in this book."

"I think I may have an idea," said Beaver excitedly. "Since we're having two babies, why don't we pick names that start with 'A's and 'B's? 'A' for Ashleigh and 'B' for Beaver."

"Wouldn't you want to do 'C' for Charles, your real name?" Ashleigh asked.

"Ash, does anyone really ever call me Charles?" Beaver replied.

"Well no, not really. Just my mom," said Ashleigh.

"So I think 'A's and 'B's will work just fine," said Beaver.

"Alright, that might work," said Ashleigh. "Let me go get a pad of paper so we can start writing down names we like."

Beaver watched as Ashleigh went into the den and came out with a notebook. She handed Beaver the baby name book so she could write down the names that they liked.

"Alright, let's start with the 'A's," said Beaver opening the book.

The two of them began scanning the page and writing down every name that they agreed on and liked.

"OK, ready to hear the list?" Ashleigh asked once they finished with the 'A' section.

"Lay it on me," said Beaver.

"Aaron, Abigail, Adrianna, Aimee, Allexa, Alexander, Allen, Allyson, Annaleigh, Andrew, Ashton, Aundrea and Austin," said Ashleigh.

"You know," said Beaver thinking about it. "Several of those names fit together well if we end up having a boy and a girl."

"What do you mean?" Ashleigh asked.

"Like Allexa and Alexander or Allen and Allyson," Beaver replied. "They kind of sound alike but are still different."

"That's true," said Ashleigh. "What about the 'B' names then? I thought you wanted one name with an 'A' and one name with a 'B'."

"Well just because we pick 'A' and 'B' names doesn't mean that each kid has to start with an 'A' or a 'B'," said Beaver. "They can both have 'A' names or 'B' names. I think once we get several for both letters and know what gender or genders we are having, then things will just kind of fall into place."

"I like the way you think," said Ashleigh leaning over and giving him a kiss on the cheek.

"And if we have both of them have 'A' names this time, we can use 'B' names for the next time," said Beaver.

"Wait, who said I'm having another set of twins?" Ashleigh asked. "You're getting way ahead of yourself there."

"Sorry," said Beaver softly.

"I just want to get through this pregnancy first," said Ashleigh. "And then we can think about it again in a few years. But not right now."

"Shall we begin the 'B' names now?" Beaver asked, trying his best to change the subject and avoid any kind of argument.

"Sure," said Ashleigh opening the book to the names that started with the letter 'B'.

There were fewer names that started with the letter 'B' but they were still able to come up with a decent sized list of names.

"OK, our list of 'B' names are Bella, Bethany, Betsy, Bode, Braden, Brandi, Braylon, Breanna, Brennan, Britney, Brooke and Bryan," said Ashleigh.

"Sounds great," said Beaver.

Beaver shut the book and set it on the coffee table. He then took the notebook out of Ashleigh's hands and put is next to the book. Then he wrapped his arms around Ashleigh and pulled her close to him so the two of them were laying back and cuddling on the couch.

"I think we've got a really good start," he said. "We'll be able to narrow it down more once we know the gender of the babies."

"Yeah, I'm really proud of us," said Ashleigh. "I was so overwhelmed when we first opened the book. But it's not so bad once you pick what letter you want the names to begin with."

"Which is why it was so easy for Cappie and Casey," said Beaver. "Sometimes I hate that we almost copy off of them at times though."

"Last time I checked Casey is only having one baby," said Ashleigh as she snuggled closer to Beaver.

"Very true," Beaver replied. "I guess when we do it we do it right."

"Sure do," Ashleigh replied.

The two of them laid there for several minutes until they both heard Ashleigh's stomach growl.

"Dang, that was loud," said Beaver with a laugh.

"Guess I'm hungrier than I thought," said Ashleigh sitting up.

"Wanna go grab something to eat?" Beaver asked.

"Actually if you could go get me something I would love you forever," said Ashleigh as she put out her bottom lip and gave Beaver her sad puppy dog eyes. "I don't really feel like leaving the house. I haven't showered or anything yet today."

"What do you want?" sighed Beaver who was getting more and more used to his wife's cravings.

"You're going to hate me for this," said Ashleigh with a smile. "I kind of want chicken nuggets from Wendy's, french fries from McDonalds and pickles from the grocery store."

"I just bought you pickles a couple of days ago," said Beaver.

"Those were sweet pickles," whined Ashleigh. "I want dill pickles now."

"Well what's wrong with the fries at Wendy's?" grunted Beaver. "Why do I have to go to McDonalds too?"

"Because Wendy's fries are too big and McDonald's chicken nuggets aren't very good," said Ashleigh.

"You are so lucky I love you," said Beaver as he went over to the front door and put his shoes on. "Anything else your majesty?"

"Well since you asked—" Ashleigh began.

"Wait, forget I asked," interrupted Beaver. "I am not going four different places just to get you lunch."

"But ice cream from Dairy Queen sounds so good," whined Ashleigh.

"Your whining doesn't work on me," said Beaver grabbing his keys and opening the front door. "I'll be back in a little bit with your nuggets, fries and pickles."

"OK," Ashleigh sighed as the front door shut.

While Beaver was gone Ashleigh showered and changed into her clothes for the day. She then started a load of laundry and was able to get a few things cleaned in the kitchen. About forty-five minutes later Beaver walked back into the house. He had McDonald's french fries, Wendy's chicken nuggets, dill pickles and of course, Dairy Queen ice cream. Deep down he would do anything Ashleigh asked of him. Her pregnancy has been his greatest gift of all and he's done everything to make sure to be true to his promise; he would always be there for her.

* * *

_**A/N: Hello everyone! So another happy and drama-free chapter for ya. Anyone else upset with what Casey said to Ashleigh at the end of the last episode? I really thought things changed when she talked to Cappie at the campfire but guess not..... Anyway, for all of those waiting for some drama, the next chapter will start some drama. But first, it looks like Cappie and Beaver have a surprise up their sleeves :0)**_

_**Also, I wanted to get your input. I'm having a hard time deciding what gender(s) I want for Ashleigh and Beaver's twins. Can you guys let me know what you think? And if you want to pair any of the name suggestions above, that would be cool too. Hopefully I can get a lot of input from the readers and go with the popular vote because it really could go any way for me at this point. I'm pretty sure I know what I want for the gender of Cappie and Casey's baby too but if you want to give your input on that too I wouldn't mind. Thanks ahead of time for anyone who responds with their ideas!**_


	122. Crashed

CRASHED

Casey was cleaning Cadence up after breakfast when the doorbell rang.

"Come on in Ash," she yelled after seeing Ashleigh through the glass on the front door.

"Ugh, it is getting colder out there," said Ashleigh as she let herself into the house.

"Well it is the beginning of September," said Casey as she lifted Cadence up and set her on the ground.

"Ashy!" said Cadence running up to Ashleigh.

"Hey girl, how was breakfast?" Ashleigh asked.

"Good," said Cadence. "Mommy give nanna."

"Mmmm, that does sound good," said Ashleigh as she walked with Cadence into the living room.

"Cap was up so early this morning I barely saw him," said Casey as she washed the dishes in the sink.

"Same with Beave," said Ashleigh. "I feel bad Cappie has to be at work on your anniversary."

"Yeah," Casey sighed. "But he said he would be home after whatever meetings and inspections they were having. So I'm hoping we can at least have dinner together."

"I can't believe it's been two years already," said Ashleigh. "It's like time has really flown by."

"Ashy. Baby," said Cadence as she went up to Ashleigh and put her hand on her stomach.

"Yup, auntie Ashleigh is having two babies," said Ashleigh with a smile.

"Two?" Cadence questioned.

"Ashleigh is silly," said Casey as she walked over and picked Cadence up. "But she is having a baby just like mommy."

Ashleigh shot Casey a confused look.

"Let's not make her any more confused than she already is," said Casey smiling at Ashleigh. "I don't want her thinking I'm going to be having two babies too."

"Oh, understood," Ashleigh replied nodding her head. "So were you planning on cooking dinner or going out somewhere tonight?"

"Probably going out somewhere," Casey replied. "I'm not really in the mood to cook. But I guess it all just depends on when Cap is going to get home."

"He'll probably make it a point to be home at a decent time," said Ashleigh. "He has been bringing up your anniversary a lot the past couple of weeks."

"Yeah, it's strange," said Casey. "Our anniversary last year wasn't a very big deal. We actually took Cadence to dinner with us. And thankfully she was a pretty good girl."

"I good girl!" Cadence piped in.

"Yes you are," said Casey giving her a kiss on the cheek.

"Do you have anyone to watch her tonight?" Ashleigh asked. "Because I'm sure Beaver and I could watch her if you need us too."

"I hadn't really thought about it," Casey replied. "I'll see what Cap wants to do and I'll let you know."

"I wuv mommy," said Cadence as she laid her head against Casey's shoulder.

"Awwww," said Ashleigh. "I can't wait until I hear that one day."

"Yeah, it's pretty great," said Casey as she squeezed Cadence. "I love you too honey."

"Oh, did I tell you I felt the babies move the other day?" Ashleigh asked excitedly.

"No, that's so exciting Ash!" Casey replied.

"It was totally weird though," said Ashleigh. "I felt like a kick and it actually scared me because I wasn't expecting it."

"Was Beaver able to feel them move?" Casey asked.

"Yeah," said Ashleigh with a smile. "He cried he was so touched."

"That's Beave for ya," said Casey.

"Have you felt anything yet?" Ashleigh asked.

"No, not yet," Casey replied. "You're a little farther along than I am though. And you have two babies to make room for in there. So it's no wonder you're already feeling them move."

"That's true," Ashleigh replied.

"It was a pretty amazing moment when Cappie and I felt Cadence move for the first time," said Casey with a smile.

"Me?" Cadence asked.

"Yes you," Casey replied. "You used to be in mommy's tummy. Daddy and I were so excited when we felt you move for the first time. At first you wouldn't move for daddy though."

"Not me," Cadence replied.

"Yes you," said Casey touching her finger to Cadence's nose. "Mommy felt you move and daddy put his hand on my tummy to see if he could feel it but you fell asleep and didn't move for him."

Cadence laughed.

"I guess you just wanted to make daddy wait huh?" Ashleigh asked.

"Yeah," laughed Cadence. She loved to hear stories about herself. She reached over and put her hand on Casey's stomach. "No feel," she said looking up at Casey.

"The baby is probably sleeping," said Casey. "Babies need lots of sleep."

"Yeah," Cadence said softly with a sigh.

"Mommy will let you know when the new baby moves so you can feel it, don't worry," said Casey.

"O-K," Cadence replied.

All three girls sat around watching movies and chatting for the next few hours. Casey was just about to put Cadence down for her nap when the doorbell rang.

"Me!" yelled Cadence as she climbed off the couch and ran towards the door.

"Who on earth could that be?" Casey asked as she got up and followed Cadence to the front door.

Cadence wasn't able to open the door due to the child-proof locks so she waited patiently until Casey opened the door.

"Russy!" she yelled as she jumped into Rusty's arms.

"Hey my favorite little girl," said Rusty as he walked into the house.

"Russ what are you doing here?" Casey asked him in a confused voice.

"Well nice to see you too," said Rusty as he gave Cadence a kiss on the cheek.

"Sorry, I just wasn't expecting you or anything," Casey replied. "You should be at school."

"I've got the week off," said Rusty as he put Cadence down. "There is a huge conference all my professors are going to for the week and since they'll be gone, they gave the students the week off."

"I'm surprised they didn't make you guys go," said Casey as she shut the door and followed Rusty and Cadence into the living room.

"Oh they tried," said Rusty. "But myself and a couple of other students talked them out of forcing us to go."

"Hey Rusty," said Ashleigh standing up and giving Rusty a hug.

"Whoa!" said Rusty with a small laugh. "You're really popping out there."

"Thanks," said Ashleigh rolling her eyes.

"You know I'm just kidding," said Rusty backing away from Ashleigh. "You look radiant."

"That's better," said Ashleigh as she sat back down on the couch.

"Where's Jordan?" Casey asked as her and Rusty also sat down on the couch.

"She's still in Ohio," said Rusty with a sigh. "I really wanted her to come with me to see you guys but she was called into a last minute photo shoot and had to back out."

"Are things still going well for you two?" Casey asked.

"Oh yeah, couldn't be better," said Rusty.

"Have you picked a wedding date yet?" Ashleigh asked.

"People keep asking us that," said Rusty. "But no, we haven't really picked a date yet. I think Jordan and I just want to enjoy being engaged for a little while."

"There's nothing wrong with that," said Casey. "You two are both young."

"Case you were already married with a baby on the way when you were my age," said Rusty rolling his eyes. "Don't talk to me about being too young."

"OK, you got me," said Casey rolling her eyes back at Rusty.

"I think you guys should elope," Ashleigh piped in. "That seems like it's something Jordan would go for."

"We've tossed around the idea actually," said Rusty. "But I'm not sure how mom and dad would like it."

"Who cares?" Ashleigh asked. "It's your wedding. You should do whatever you want."

"Mommy poop," said Cadence interrupting the conversation.

"Excuse me," said Casey as she sniffed the air. "I'm going to take her upstairs for a changing."

"Good idea," said Rusty fanning his hand in front of his face.

Cadence just giggled as Casey carried her upstairs.

"How are the babies?" Rusty asked turning to Ashleigh.

"They are great, healthy as can be," said Ashleigh with a smile. "I even felt them move for the first time the other day."

"That's cool," said Rusty. "And how is Beaver holding up? I haven't seen him in a really long time."

"He's going to be such a great father," Ashleigh replied. "He gets all excited when someone even mentions the babies to him."

"Oddly enough I could picture Beave as a good father," said Rusty. "He's really matured since graduating but still is a child at heart at times."

"So true," said Ashleigh with a smile.

"And how is the new restaurant doing?" Rusty asked.

"They were behind on a few inspections," said Ashleigh. "That's where the boys are today. But other than that business is going really well. The new restaurant isn't quite as busy as the one downtown but it's still bringing them in a good amount of money."

"That's wonderful. I'll probably stop by there for dinner sometime this week," Rusty stated.

"Uh, Rusty?" Casey asked as she walked back into the room with Cadence. "Do you have any idea why there is a limo sitting in the driveway?"

"What?" Ashleigh asked as she got up to look outside.

Rusty just smiled.

"You do know!" said Casey setting Cadence down. "What is going on?"

"Now I don't know much," said Rusty trying to contain his smile. "All I know is that I'm supposed to watch Cadence while you and Ashleigh get in the limo and go wherever it takes you."

"Wait, why me?" Ashleigh asked as she walked back into the room. "It's Casey's anniversary, not mine."

"I'm just telling you what I was told," Rusty replied. "Now go on you two."

"I can't just leave Rusty," said Casey. "I haven't done my hair yet today and I'm wearing a sweat suit."

"It doesn't matter," said Rusty picking up Cadence. "You are to go just the way that you are."

"I don't know if I like this," said Casey turning to Ashleigh.

"Who cares? We get to ride in a limo!" said Ashleigh excitedly.

"Cadence tell mommy to go," said Rusty.

"Mommy go!" exclaimed Cadence.

Casey laughed as she leaned over and kissed Cadence on the cheek.

"Fine, I'll go," she said backing away. "I guess I'll see you guys later."

"Bye, have fun," said Rusty as Ashleigh and Casey walked out the front door.

The limo driver got out as soon as he saw Ashleigh and Casey walking up to the car.

"Good afternoon ladies," he said opening the door to the limo for them.

"Where are we going?" Casey asked as she followed Ashleigh into the limo.

"My lips are sealed madam," said the driver as he shut the door and got into the driver's seat.

"This is crazy," said Casey as the limo pulled out of the driveway.

"Would you honestly expect anything else from Cap?" Ashleigh asked.

Casey just grunted as she looked out the window, trying to figure out where she and Ashleigh were being taken.

The ride was mostly silent with the two girls occasionally making small talk and trying to guess where they were going. As they grew closer to the destination Casey finally had her questions answered. Forty five minutes later the limo pulled into the Illinois Beach Resort, the same place her and Cappie got married two years ago to the day.

"Awwww, this is so sweet," said Ashleigh as she noticed where the limo had taken them.

Casey just smiled as the limo driver opened the door for the two of them.

"So what do we do from here?" Ashleigh asked as they walked into the hotel lobby.

"I'm not sure," Casey replied expecting Cappie to jump out and wrap his arms around her at any moment.

Instead one of the hotel workers came up to the two of them.

"Can I help you ladies?" she asked.

"Hopefully," said Casey with a laugh. "My best friend Ashleigh and I were just kind of dropped off here and we're not sure where we are supposed to be going."

"Oh, are you Mrs. Cappington and Mrs. Thompson?" she asked.

Both girls nodded their heads yes.

"Right this way then," she continued walking towards the hotel spa. "We have pregnancy massages scheduled for both of you."

"Oh yes, I could use one so badly," said Ashleigh.

Both girls were taken to a room to change into robes and then each went to a separate room to have the massage done. Casey really enjoyed her massage. Her therapist was a lady named Jane. The two of them made small talk at first but Casey enjoyed the massage a lot better when the only noise she heard was the soothing music being played in the background.

She had just begun to change back into her clothes when Ashleigh came giggling into the room.

"Well you seemed to enjoy your massage quite a bit," said Casey as she pulled her pants on.

"Beaver was actually pretty good," said Ashleigh. "How was Cappie?"

"What are you talking about?" Casey asked.

"Beaver was my massage therapist," Ashleigh replied. "Wasn't Cappie yours?"

"No," Casey replied. "I had a lady named Jane."

"Oh, that's odd," said Ashleigh as she pulled her shirt over her head. "I thought for sure you would be surprised just like I was with Cappie giving you your massage."

"So where is he then?" Casey asked as she slipped on her shoes.

"Beaver should know," said Ashleigh. "Let's go ask him."

The girls gathered up their things and met Beaver out in the lobby.

"Where's Cappie?" Casey asked.

"I can't say," Beaver replied. "But I can give you this."

Beaver handed Casey a room key.

"So I guess I'm supposed to go to room 315?" Casey asked reading the room number on the card.

"Have fun," said Beaver as he pulled Ashleigh away.

Casey watched as Beaver took Ashleigh down the hall and out of sight. She then looked at the room key again and made her way over to the elevators. She rode the elevator up to the third floor and found the room. She was expecting to find Cappie inside the room when she opened the door but he wasn't there. There was a card on the bed on top of a black dress.

_Your presence is requested at the hotel restaurant at 6:30_ was all the card said.

Casey noticed it was already nearing six so she hurriedly began to get ready for her date.

* * *

"Beaver, what is going on? Why are we here? Isn't it Casey and Cappie's anniversary?" Ashleigh asked as Beaver continued to pull her down the hall.

"It may not be our wedding anniversary," replied Beaver. "But it's the anniversary of our first day together officially as a couple. I just wanted to make it special for you."

"Well the massage was very nice," said Ashleigh. "I may have to get one of those more often."

"Whatever you want," said Beaver as the two of them approached a set of closed doors.

Ashleigh turned to him and gave him a strange look.

"I thought tonight we would have a relaxing night with dinner and a movie," he said opening the doors to a large room with a big screen in the front of it. Towards the back of the room was a table set up for the two of them to have dinner. And in front of the big screen was a little love seat for them to sit on and watch the movie.

"This is so cute Beave," said Ashleigh.

"Let's start with some dinner," said Beaver as he lead Ashleigh over to the table set up for the two of them.

Beaver pulled Ashleigh's chair out as she sat down. He then lifted the covers off their plates to reveal steak, mashed potatoes and steamed vegetables as their meals.

"Everything looks delicious Beave," said Ashleigh as she began to cut up her steak.

"So were you and Casey surprised to see the limo outside waiting for you?" Beaver asked as he also sat down and began eating.

"Yeah, Rusty just showed up out of the blue which we thought was weird but didn't think much of it," said Ashleigh. "But the limo really got us thinking that something was up. It was fun to ride in though."

"I thought you'd like it," said Beaver with a smile.

"So have you guys had all this planned for a while?" Ashleigh asked.

"Only about a week actually," Beaver replied. "Most of it was Cappie's idea but I was the one who made the reservations for everything."

"So did you guys really have to be at the restaurant early this morning for inspections?" Ashleigh asked.

"Actually we did go to the restaurant this morning," said Beaver. "But we were only there to meet up and come up here to get everything ready."

"So there aren't any inspections?" Ashleigh asked.

"Now that wasn't a lie," said Beaver. "We do have a few inspections that need to be done but nothing that can't wait a few days."

Ashleigh smiled as she took another bite of her food.

"You are so beautiful Ash," said Beaver smiling back at her. "I'm so lucky to have you."

"I feel exactly the same way," said Ashleigh.

"So have the babies been moving around much?" Beaver asked.

"Here and there," Ashleigh replied. "They hardly moved at all during the massage. I think they were just as relaxed as I was."

"I've been thinking about the nursery," said Beaver. "We should probably get started on getting that together soon."

"I think once we find out the gender of the babies it'll be easier to put everything together," said Ashleigh. "We'll find out at my appointment next month."

"That just seems so far away," said Beaver. "I'm eager to get started now. Can't we just paint the room like yellow or green or something that isn't gender specific?"

"I guess we could," Ashleigh replied. "I just always thought of having a pink room for the girls or a blue room for the boys just like Casey has for Cadence."

"But what if we have one of each? Are you going to paint one half of the room blue and the other half pink?" Beaver asked.

"You would do that for me?" Ashleigh asked excitedly.

"No, that will look silly," said Beaver. "That's why I think we should paint it any other color other than blue or pink."

"Can we talk about this another time?" Ashleigh asked sensing an argument was about to start. "I just want us to enjoy our night."

"Fair enough," Beaver replied.

The two of them ate the rest of the dinner making small talk about baby furniture and other things they needed to buy. After they were done eating Beaver led Ashleigh down to the love seat and they made themselves comfortable.

"I bought several dessert items for the movie," said Beaver as he handed Ashleigh a bag full of various candy items.

"Mmmm Twizzlers! You are the best!" she said pulling them out of the bag and put one in her mouth.

Beaver just smiled as he reached for a large remote sitting next to him.

"So what are we watching?" Ashleigh asked.

"Only your most favorite movie ever," Beaver replied as he pressed play on the remote.

Ashleigh knew immediately as soon as the intro began to play.

"Clueless!" she said excitedly.

Beaver laughed at her reaction as he draped his arm around the top of the couch. Ashleigh took this as a sign and snuggled up closely to him. Beaver instinctively brought his hand down and rested it on top of Ashleigh's stomach.

"It's our children's first movie," he said rubbing his hand back and forth. "I hope it's a good one."

"You seriously have never seen this movie?" Ashleigh asked. "How have I been together with you for two years and never had you watch this movie?"

Beaver just shrugged his shoulders.

"Well this is a perfect first movie for the two of them," said Ashleigh proudly. "They'll love it."

Beaver kissed the top of Ashleigh's head as he squeezed her closer to him.

"I love you Ash," he whispered as the intro finished.

"I love you too Beave," Ashleigh replied with a smile.

* * *

Casey took one last look in the mirror and made her way down to the hotel restaurant. She loved the black dress Cappie had picked out for her. It was a halter top with a high waist that showed off her baby bump. But the flowing skirt of the dress made her feel like a princess and not like a fourteen week pregnant woman.

She entered the restaurant and began searching among the crowd for Cappie. There were so many people around that she was worried she wouldn't be able to find him. Eventually the host came walking up towards her.

"Mrs. Cappington?" he asked.

"Yeah, that's me," Casey replied.

"Right this way miss," he said leading Casey through the mass of people in the dining room. Casey grew more curious as to what was going on when he didn't go to a table in the dining area. Instead he took her to one of the doors at the back of the restaurant. He opened the door and the slight breeze from the outside caught Casey by surprise.

"Your table is right out there," he said motioning for Casey to walk through the door.

Casey looked at him oddly as she stepped out onto the sand outside of the door. The host quickly shut the door behind her and she began making her way towards the water.

As she came over a small hill she spotted her destination. There, in the same place she married Cappie two years ago, was a table set up in the middle of the sand. It was covered with candles and beautiful red roses. But Casey could have cared less what the table looked like. Her main focus was on her husband. There he stood in one of his best Armani suits with two red roses in his hand. His long hair was blowing gently in the breeze and he instantly smiled as soon as he saw her.

Casey slowly made her way towards him trying her best not to fall in the uneven sand beneath her feet.

"You look gorgeous sweetheart," said Cappie as she finally reached her destination.

"You look very handsome yourself," said Casey taking a few steps closer to him.

Cappie smiled wider as he handed one of the roses to her. "One rose," he began. "symbolizing the first year of our marriage. It was during the first year that we welcomed our beautiful daughter Cadence into the world. I know how much happiness she has brought to both of our lives. It was in that year we were finally able to share our first dance at CRU that should have happened at the Greek Ball many, many years before. It was also a year with some difficult times, most notably when Cadence was fighting for her life in the hospital. But it was times like those that I believe made our love so much stronger. We learned how to be strong for one another and I know without you I wouldn't have made it through that difficult time. And then we have the second rose, symbolizing our second year of marriage," said Cappie handing her the second rose. "Again it was a year full of happy times and difficult times. It was a year where I almost lost you. That scare made me realize how much I need you in my life. It made me wonder how I ever lived without you when we broke up freshman year. At the same time we lost our child which was a very difficult time for the both of us. It was probably the most stress our relationship has ever had. But we made it through it because there is just something so special about the two of us Case. I have no doubt that we can and will get through anything. We also saw our best friends get married during this past year, each of them seeking to have a love as strong and as powerful as ours. And here we are now with our dreams of having another child finally coming true. We may not have Cappie junior actually in the world until our third year of marriage but the baby is just as important to our second year as he or she will be to our third. The baby is like our little miracle, again proving that the two of us can get through anything."

Cappie reached forward and wiped a tear off of Casey's face as it fell down her cheek. She smiled as she leaned her head into the gentleness of his touch.

"You are absolutely everything to me Casey," said Cappie as he took a step closer to her. "Our love just doesn't stop at two roses. I want to share as many roses with you as I possibly can in this lifetime because you are my soul mate until the end of time. I love you more than words can say and I just want to wish you a very happy two year anniversary."

Casey stared right into Cappie's eyes, tears still streaming down her face. Cappie has always been so romantic with her and it always amazes her how he seems to top every romantic thing he has done for her before. He couldn't have said any more beautiful words and she was so touched it left her speechless. She watched his lips move with every word he said during his speech and all she could think about was how much she wanted to kiss him. So once he was finished she crashed her lips against his, showing him how perfect his words were through her own actions because he left her so speechless. Cappie immediately dropped his hand from her face and wrapped both of his arms tightly around her waist as she did the same to him. The sounds of the waves behind them crashing against the shore provided them with the tempo for the kiss, deepening with each crash against the wet sand. If was their need of oxygen that finally broke them away from each other. Both of them were panting loudly trying their best to take in as much oxygen as they could.

"I love you so much," Casey was finally able to whisper as she brushed a piece of Cappie's hair out of his eyes.

Cappie leaned down and gave her another kiss on the lips, this one much lighter and softer than their previous kiss.

"Shall we eat some dinner?" Cappie asked as he backed away.

"Dinner just seems so unimportant after everything that you just said to me," said Casey with a small laugh.

"Yes but dinner is important for you and little Cappie junior in there," said Cappie as he poked at Casey's stomach.

Casey let out another small laugh as Cappie pulled her chair out for her.

"I hope you're in the mood for seafood," he said taking the lid off of her plate. "The chef recommended the salmon earlier today and it sounded really good."

"Smells good," said Casey as she watched Cappie take his seat and take the lid off of his meal.

"And tastes good," continued Casey as she took a bite of the salmon. "Great choice."

"Thanks," Cappie replied. "I was debating between the steak and the salmon but Beaver chose the steak for their meal and I wanted to do something different."

"So did the two of you come up here this morning?" Casey asked.

"Yeah, we met up at the restaurant and drove up here," Cappie replied.

"Hey, how come you weren't there to give me my massage like Beaver was for Ashleigh?" Casey asked.

"The plan was for me to give you the massage," replied Cappie with a small sigh. "But there ended up being a crisis at work. They ran out of a few items so I had to frantically call some of the local suppliers to see if they could deliver what we needed for the night. By the time I was done with that you were already half way through the massage and I didn't want to interrupt."

"It would have been kind of sexy if you did," said Casey with a sly smile. "You know how much I love your massages and feeling your hands all over my back."

"Well I promise to make it up to you," Cappie replied. "I'm sure later on in your pregnancy you'll be getting daily massages from me."

"Yeah, that's probably true," said Casey taking another bite of her food.

The two of them sat just listening to the waves as they ate until Cappie finally broke the silence.

"Case, does it bother you that we never went on a honeymoon?" he asked.

"That's an odd question," said Casey scrunching her eyebrows at Cappie. "I actually really never thought about it."

"Really?" Cappie replied. "I've thought about it a lot of times actually. Having a romantic getaway where it's just the two of us in some exotic destination just sounds so amazing."

"Well yeah, when you put it that way it's kind of sad that we never got to experience that," said Casey. "But we didn't have a choice. I couldn't fly that late in my pregnancy and we really couldn't enjoy ourselves to the fullest if we did go somewhere."

"I just feel like it's one thing that the two of us have yet to experience together," said Cappie.

"Well there is nothing wrong with having a honeymoon several years later," said Casey. "As long as our kids are old enough and I'm not pregnant I'm all for going somewhere with you."

"Maybe we can make baby number three on our honeymoon," said Cappie as he winked at Casey.

"How many times do I have to tell you that we need to get through baby number two before we talk about three, four, five, six, seven and however many more your crazy brain thinks I'm going to pop out," Casey said jokingly.

Cappie just laughed as he finished up the food on his plate.

"Would you like to go for a walk on the beach?" he asked once Casey had finished her meal also.

"Sure," Casey replied as she stood up and took Cappie's hand into hers.

Cappie noticed the breeze began to pick up and took off his suit coat and draped it around Casey's shoulders.

"Thanks," she said as they continued to walk towards the pier.

"Rusty did show up to watch Cadence right?" Cappie asked realizing he hadn't made sure the plans went exactly to plan.

"He sure did," Casey replied. "And of course Cadence couldn't have been happier seeing her Uncle Rusty."

"She really loves everyone in the family," said Cappie.

"Speaking of family," said Casey turning to look at Cappie. "I haven't heard anything about your parents in a while. Have you talked to them lately?"

"Yeah, I talked to them a few days ago actually," Cappie replied. "They're in Maine somewhere I guess. Mom said that they were planning on visiting for Cadence's birthday next month. But you know how good they are on keeping their plans so I'm not getting my hopes up."

"It's a shame Cadence really doesn't know her other grandma and grandpa that well," said Casey.

"She thinks she does though," said Cappie with a small laugh. "I've had her talk to my mom a few times on the phone and she just laughs and giggles at just about anything my mom says. Those two would probably be really close if mom and dad were around more often."

"Do you miss them?" Casey softly asked.

Cappie stopped walking and sighed. "Yeah," he replied. "I just wish they made it a point to come around a little more often and be a part of not only Cadence's life but mine too."

"Do they know we're expecting again?" Casey asked.

"Funny story," said Cappie with a small laugh as he grabbed Casey's hand and began to walk again. "Cadence was the one who actually told them. This was before we told her about the baby. She was just gabbing away with my mom on the phone and made a comment that you were fat. So of course when I got back on the phone mom started grilling me with questions and that's when I told her."

"How come you didn't tell me that they knew?" Casey asked.

"Because they pretty much reacted the same way they did when I told them about Cadence," said Cappie.

"What?!" Casey stopped dead in her tracks. "What kinds of things did they say?"

"Just that they understood that Cadence was kind of an 'oops baby' but there was no reason for us to rush into having another baby. They still think we're too young and you know, all that other crap," said Cappie with obvious frustration in his voice.

"What about all the talk about how Cadence brought everyone so much closer together and how much of a blessing she was for your family?" Casey asked. "Can't they see how great of a job we are doing now raising Cadence and that we're more than ready to have a second child?"

"You see that's the point," said Cappie standing in front of Casey and putting his hands on her waist. "They aren't around to see how well we are doing. They don't have a clue. And if that is the way that they want to be then to hell with them. We know this is right for us and that is all that matters."

"But they are your parents Cap," said Casey. "I saw how hurt you were when they didn't show approval when you told them about Cadence. You can't stand here and tell me that it's not affecting you."

"OK so maybe it is getting to me a little," said Cappie as they turned around and began to walk back towards the hotel. "But there is nothing that I can do about it. Hopefully they'll actually come for Cadence's birthday and they can see for themselves how well we are doing."

"And if they don't come?" Casey asked.

"Then I'm not sure what I'm going to do," said Cappie shrugging his shoulders.

"Cap…." Casey mumbled with a concerned voice.

"Case, can we just not talk about it right now," said Cappie. "It's our two year anniversary. You, Cadence and Cappie junior my main priority as far as family is concerned. I just want to have a romantic and peaceful anniversary with you and show you how lucky I am to have you in my life. All that other stuff isn't important right now."

"I understand," said Casey nodding her head.

"Now, why don't we head up to the room for some dessert?" said Cappie as he began to nibble on Casey's neck.

"My, your mood changes quickly," said Casey trying to ignore the tingling sensation Cappie was sending down her spine with the kisses on her neck.

"The thought of making love to his beautiful wife can change any man's mood very quickly," said Cappie moving his kisses down to her collarbone.

"How about we make it to the room before you go any farther," said Casey gently pushing Cappie away.

"What's wrong Mrs. Cappington?" Cappie whispered with a goofy grin on his face. "Am I turning you on?"

Casey stood on her tiptoes and brought her lips just inches away from Cappie's ear.

"Just shut up and take me up to the room," she whispered seductively to him.

Cappie's grin widened as he scooped Casey up into his arms as quickly as he could and carried her up to the room. He couldn't have planned their second anniversary any better.

* * *

Over the next two weeks Casey and Ashleigh began making themselves busy with extra activities in and out of the house. They spent a lot of time at Ashleigh and Beaver's house planning out what room to pick for the nursery and how it would look. Beaver, however, wouldn't let them do any of the work. He was determined to make the nursery his project. So the girls busied themselves drawing designs and looking at paint and wallpaper samples trying to pick the most appropriate ones.

They also began some craft classes at the local recreation center. It was a great opportunity because they offer daycare for children while the classes are being offered. Casey knew it would give Cadence an opportunity to interact with other kids her age so the new activities were benefiting both of them. The first class focused on scrapbooking which being in a sorority, both girls had a lot of experience with. But they learned several new techniques and layouts to use for future projects. The other class they took was pottery and it didn't go as well. Ashleigh burnt her pot in the kiln and Casey's bowl was so lop-sided the contents of the bowl would fall out of the side as soon as she set it on the table. Even though the class itself didn't go so well the two girls had fun and it gave them an opportunity to get out of the house and try some new things.

Last, but not least, they joined a book club. Neither girl was very interested in reading while in college because most of their reading materials were boring textbooks. But this book club included a lot of fiction and non-fiction books that were both interesting and entertaining to both of the girls. The group consisted of ten women that meet each week at one of the member's houses. They would discuss several chapters in the book and have snacks and drinks afterwards. Even though the women in the group were older than Ashleigh and Casey, they still enjoyed the group.

This particular evening Casey dropped Cadence off at her parent's house so her and Ashleigh could go to the book club meeting. Casey was planning on picking Cadence up afterwards but time quickly got away from her. After discussing the chapters, all the women sat around and talked about children, men, marriage and just about any other topic on their minds. Casey and Ashleigh were so wrapped up in the conversation they didn't notice it was nearing midnight.

"Oh my gosh," said Casey finally looking at her watch. "I've got to call my mom. Excuse me," she said to the women in the group as she took her cell phone out and walked to the other side of the room.

"Hello," her dad answered in a sleepy voice.

"Hey dad, it's me," said Casey. "I am so sorry I haven't been by to pick Cadence up yet. Ashleigh and I just got wrapped up talking here that we completely lost track of time. We're leaving now."

"Don't worry about it Case," Mr. Cartwright replied. "Cadence is already asleep. Why don't you just enjoy the rest of your night and pick her up tomorrow."

"Are you sure dad?" Casey asked. "I don't want to impose or anything."

"We love our granddaughter," he replied. "She's welcome here anytime, you know that. Besides, you probably haven't had a night to yourselves in a while. Enjoy it and don't worry about us. We'll be fine."

"Thanks dad," said Casey. "You're the best."

"Now I'm going back to bed," he said with a yawn. "I'll see you tomorrow."

"Goodnight dad," said Casey as she hung up the phone.

"Everything OK?" Ashleigh asked as Casey rejoined the group.

"Yeah, my dad said it's OK for Cadence just to stay the night there," Casey replied. "So we're free to do whatever."

"Well I don't know about all of you ladies but it is getting really late," said one of the women standing up. "I really should get going."

"Yeah, me too," said another woman.

The next thing Casey and Ashleigh knew everyone was saying goodbye and heading out the door. They followed along with the group and sat in the Jeep for a few minutes trying to figure out what to do.

"I feel like such an old woman," said Casey with a small laugh. "Here I have a night off and the only thing I can think about doing is going home and finishing up the laundry."

"That is pretty sad," said Ashleigh with a laugh.

"Well, do you have any suggestions?" Casey asked.

"We could go to a dance club," said Ashleigh.

"Right. I'm sure all the men there just can't wait to grind up against two pregnant women," said Casey rolling her eyes.

"OK, bad idea," said Ashleigh. "How about we go to a bar then?"

"Ash, once again, we're pregnant. We can't drink," said Casey.

"Well I guess we should just go home then because there really isn't anything to do," said Ashleigh with a sigh.

Casey started the Jeep and was about to put it into drive when she smiled and turned to Ashleigh.

"Uh oh, what's that look for?" Ashleigh asked.

"Nothing bad," said Casey. "I was just thinking we could surprise the guys. They're probably closing up at work now. We could stop by and maybe whip up some food for them if they haven't eaten. Or just kidnap them, take them home and have our way with them."

"I like the second part of your idea better," Ashleigh said with a grin as she rubbed her hands together.

"OK, let's go then," said Casey as she pulled out onto the street. "They are at the new location right?"

"Yeah, Beave said both of them were going to be there to finish up some things for the inspections and stuff," Ashleigh replied.

"Excellent," said Casey as she began to drive towards the restaurant.

The fifteen minute ride was mostly silent until Ashleigh spoke.

"Uh, how are we supposed to get in if the door is locked?" Ashleigh asked as they neared the location.

"We could always knock," said Casey. "Or call them. Either way could work."

"Yeah, good idea," said Ashleigh.

"Damn, what is with all the traffic?" Casey asked as she noticed her speed was becoming slower and slower.

"Seriously," said Ashleigh. "There should not be this much traffic at this time of night."

"Poke your head out the window and see if you can see anything," said Casey.

Ashleigh rolled down the window to look towards the front of all the traffic.

"Ugh, there must be an accident up there," she said sitting back down in the seat. "I saw some flashing lights for policemen and things."

"Wonderful," said Casey with a sigh. "The one night I'm able to come and surprise Cappie and traffic stands right smack in my way."

"Well the good news is that we're still moving," said Ashleigh. "The restaurant is close so we should get there eventually."

"Yeah, I guess you're right," Casey replied.

The two girls sat staring intently out the windows at all the traffic. For about five more minutes they were able to inch their way forward until things came to a complete stop.

"Oh come on," Casey grunted. "This is ridiculous."

"No kidding," said Ashleigh who was becoming just as annoyed as Casey was.

After sitting there for a couple more minutes and not moving an inch Casey opened her door.

"What are you doing?" Ashleigh asked.

"I'm going to try and stand up to get a better look at what is going on up there," Casey replied.

"Well yell and tell them to hurry up while you're at it," said Ashleigh was a laugh.

Just as quickly as Casey stood up to get a better look, she collapsed back down in the seat.

"Oh my god Ash, there isn't an accident up there. The restaurant is on fire!"

* * *

_**A/N: Hey everyone! Wow, this ended up being such a long chapter. I promised some drama to start so that's why I added the last part. Sorry about the crazy cliffhanger though :0)**_

_**Speaking of cliffhangers.....anyone else think we're going to be left with a really big cliffhanger with the season finale tomorrow?? I'm pretty sure we are and if that's the case you might want to be on the lookout for a couple of one shots I'll write over the next week or so to help get me through the wait.....haha. But of course this story will be continued also. Hope you enjoyed reading this super long chapter. And you know the drill.....review to let me know what you think! **_


	123. Waiting

WAITING

"Are you serious?!" exclaimed Ashleigh

"Yes!" Casey replied. "There are a lot of fire trucks and ambulance and cop cars right in front of the restaurant."

"Oh my god," said Ashleigh under her breath like the shock of the news just hit her.

"I'm not about to wait for this traffic," said Casey as she put the car in drive and pulled off to the side of the road. "Let's go Ash."

"Wait, we're walking all the way there?" Ashleigh asked.

"Do you have a better idea?" Casey yelled as she pointed to all the traffic in front of the car.

Ashleigh didn't respond. She just quickly got out of the car and walked over to the sidewalk.

"I don't care if the cops tow my car," said Casey slamming the door shut and joining Ashleigh on the sidewalk.

The girls walked as fast as they could up to where all the fire trucks were. They could see smoke coming out of the restaurant and several firemen attempting to go in.

"Cap and Beaver better be safe and outside here," said Casey trying her best to keep her emotions in check for the time being.

They reached a crowd of people and pushed their way through to the front. But once they got to the front they were stopped by yellow caution tape and several policemen keeping people from danger.

"I need to get through here," said Casey to one of the policemen.

"No one is going anywhere near the restaurant unless they are a fireman," said the policeman. "The place is completely in flames at the moment. It is not safe."

"Well did they get everyone inside out?" Ashleigh asked frantically.

"I'm not sure, I just got here," he replied.

"Well our husbands own that restaurant and they were both here tonight," said Casey. "We want to know if they are OK or not."

"You might want to check the ambulances over there then," said the police officer pointing to his left. "I know they are treating several people who—"

Casey and Ashleigh didn't even wait for the police officer to finish his sentence. They ran as fast as two pregnant women could over to the ambulances.

"George!" exclaimed Casey as she saw one of the managers sitting on the back of one of the ambulances receiving oxygen. "Where are Cappie and Beaver? Have you seen them?"

"No—sorry—I haven't," he replied between deep breaths. "They—were in – the back – of—the place."

He quickly put the oxygen back on so he could breathe better.

"Sorry ladies, he shouldn't be talking," said one of the paramedics. "He needs to stay on the oxygen."

"Where is everyone else?" Ashleigh asked.

"There were two girls who were already taken to the hospital with minor burns," she replied. "But other than that no one else has been recovered."

"Oh my god," said Casey as she sank down to sit on the back of the ambulance next to George.

"Do you know how this happened or anything?" Ashleigh asked trying to stay as calm as possible because she knew Casey was already starting to freak out.

"From what I have heard the fire started in the kitchen," she replied. "Everyone who was cleaning up in the front of the restaurant made it out fine with just a few burns. George was in the kitchen and he's got a lot of smoke inhalation."

"What about people who were in the back behind the kitchen?" Ashleigh asked.

"Most likely trapped," the woman replied. "I think that's what the firemen are doing now to try and free them. I'm sorry ladies but we need to move George to the hospital now."

Casey stood up off of the ambulance as they situated George in the back. She watched the ambulance drive off and then turned towards the building. Thick, black smoke was coming out from all the front windows and she could see flames when she looked into the dining area. It was one of the most horrifying sights she has ever seen.

"Case, what are we supposed to do?" Ashleigh asked.

"We're going to go find like the fire chief or someone who knows something more," said Casey as she began walking towards the fire trucks. She found a man dressed in black dress pants and a white polo shirt with a walkie talkie so she approached him first.

"Excuse me sir," she said. "Our husbands are in the restaurant and we want to know if you know if they are OK or not."

"Sorry but the only people currently left in the building are the owners," he replied. "Your husbands could be by the ambulances over there or already taken to the hospital."

"But—"

"I need an update Eric!" the chief yelled into his walkie talkie and cutting Casey off before she could say anything.

"We've almost got a path cleared to get them out," someone responded on the walkie talkie.

"Are they still alive?" the chief asked.

Ashleigh and Casey grabbed hands hoping for a positive answer.

"One of them is talking to us," he responded. "Not sure about the other one."

After hearing those words Casey and Ashleigh both lost any control of their emotions they had before. They wrapped their arms tightly around each other and began to cry.

"This can't be happening Case," Ashleigh said through her sobs. "Why is this happening to us?"

"I don't know Ash," Casey replied as best as she could.

Both girls were completely terrified at this point. They hoped at first the boys would be out of the restaurant and safe. But now knowing they are trapped inside and the firemen are having a hard time getting them out has almost made their worst fears come true.

"Ladies do you need one of my men to walk you over to where the ambulances are?" the chief asked breaking their emotional moment.

Casey let go of Ashleigh and turned to face the fire chief.

"I am Casey Cappington and this is Ashleigh Thomas," she said. "Our husbands are the owners of the restaurant."

The fire chief had a small sense of shock come over his face. He realized the messages being relayed to him were overhead by the two girls and they weren't very good news.

"Oh my, I'm so sorry," he said completely changing his tone from when he was speaking to them before. His tone now was much softer and sympathetic. "You know, why don't I have James take the two of you to a holding area until we know more of what is going on."

"No, that's not going to happen," said Casey. "I am going to stay here next to you and watch your guys bring my husband out of that building…..ALIVE!"

Ashleigh again wrapped her arms around Casey as they both considered for just a moment that one of the boys could be dead.

"Chief!" they heard someone say on the walkie talkie.

"Yes Eric," the chief replied as he lowered the sound of the device so the girls couldn't hear.

Casey and Ashleigh leaned as close as they could without being noticeable to the chief but they weren't able to hear what was being said as he had the walkie talkie press right up against his ear.

"OK, keep me updated," he said as he brought the walkie talkie away from his ear.

Casey and Ashleigh were both staring at him waiting for him to tell them what was going on.

"He just called in to tell me that they had a few wooden boards fall in their path to get back to the victims," the chief said as he turned the volume on the walkie talkie back up. "It is going to take them a few more minutes to clear those before they can reach the victims."

Both girls just nodded their heads as they turned back to look at the restaurant.

"God, I just want to run into the building so bad," said Ashleigh. "I feel so helpless just standing out here and watching."

"I know Ash," Casey replied. "But the firemen know what they are doing. And no one wants you risking three lives to go in there at this moment. You have to think of you and the babies first."

"How can I not think of the babies," said Ashleigh. "They are moving around like crazy. I think they sense something is wrong."

"Of course they do," Casey replied. "You're heart rate and stress level is certainly up at the moment so they feel it too."

"OK, let's take some deep breaths and try to calm down," said Ashleigh.

The two girls breathed in and out several times but never taking their gazes off of the building in hopes that the boys would come walking out at any minute.

"OK chief, we finally have a path clear and are making our way towards the back," the girls heard the walkie talkie go off again.

"OK good," the chief replied. "Bring the victims out as soon as you can."

"We will," the voice replied.

The girls didn't have anything to say to the chief this time around. They knew that any minute now they were going to see their husbands and prepared themselves for the worst.

The wait felt like an eternity. Both girls were sweating from the heat given off by the building and the sheer nerves that were building up inside of them. They clenched their hands together as tightly as they could. Ashleigh debated on whether she would close her eyes or not because she wasn't sure if she could take seeing Beaver seriously hurt or even dead. But she needed to see what was going on and be as brave as she could at the moment.

Suddenly a couple of firemen came walking out of the building and Ashleigh and Casey increased their grip even tighter as they knew any minute they would know the fate of the boys, one way or another.

Then, like a ray of sunshine to Ashleigh, two firemen walked out with Beaver with each of his arms around them. At that moment Ashleigh didn't care what she was told. She lifted up the yellow caution tape and ran over to Beaver as the firemen set him down on a nearby stretcher.

"Beave, oh my god, Beave," she said breathless, tears streaming down her face.

"Ash—I'm—OK," Beaver said softly, gasping for air.

Ashleigh quickly wrapped her arms around him tightly, now sobbing uncontrollably with relief that he was OK.

"Beaver! Where's Cappie?!" yelled Casey as she also came running up to him.

"Sir we need you to lie back on the stretcher," said the paramedic.

"I—feel – dizzy," said Beaver as he let go of Ashleigh and laid back on the stretcher.

"Beaver! Please tell me that Cappie is OK!" Casey exclaimed as she looked towards the building and realized no one else was coming out of the place.

"He's—he's—" Beaver began to say but he was gasping too much for air to finish his sentence.

"He's fading fast," said one of the paramedics. "We need to get some oxygen on him and get him to the hospital right now."

Without another word the paramedics pushed Beaver towards the ambulance with Ashleigh following close behind. Within seconds they left for the hospital. Casey stood there looking at the front of the building for any signs of Cappie coming out. The heat was even more intense on her body now that she was standing closer. She just wished Beaver was able to finish what he was saying. She suddenly felt very alone.

Just then another fireman came walking out of the building. But he was alone. She frantically ran over to him and grabbed his arm.

"Where's Cappie?!" she exclaimed, the tears now running down her face more than ever. "Where's my husband?!"

* * *

_**A/N: So I got several messages asking me if I was going to do more frequent updates now that the season is over. I don't think I can do the every day updates like I did before. But since the season started I was making the chapters a lot longer (around 4000 to 5000 words). If you guys want more frequent updates I can do that but the chapters will probably be shorter (around 1500 to 2000 words like this one). So, I'll leave it up to you.....do you want less often updates with longer chapters or more often updates with shorter chapters? Send me a message or let me know in your reviews. I would love as much input as possible.....I know there are over 100 people out there that read this story and anyone can leave their input to let me know.**_

_**Also, anyone else disappointed with the season finale?? I can't believe that Cappie and Casey broke up. It was a very sad scene. I hope they get back together in the new season but I guess we never know what the writers are up to at this point LoL! I have another story that I've posted one chapter to that starts after the breakup scene so feel free to read that if you want. It's not going to be very long, just a couple of chapters. Just something I wrote to give a little closure to things while we have the long wait until the new season starts.**_

_**Thanks again for reading! I'll let you know if I'm going to do more or less often updates when I post the next chapter.**_


	124. Breathless

BREATHLESS

"Mam, calm down," the fireman replied. "And come over here with me, it's too dangerous to be this close to the building."

Casey allowed the fireman escort her behind the yellow caution tape so she was in a safer place.

"You really shouldn't be here," he continued. "I can see that you're pregnant. The smoke inhalation is not good for the baby."

"At this point in time I just want to know why my husband hasn't come out of that building yet," said Casey through her sobs.

"They're working on it OK?" the fireman replied trying to calm Casey down.

"What do you mean working on it?" Casey asked. "Why is it taking so long?"

The fireman hesitated. Casey could tell he didn't want to tell her what was going on.

"Please," she said grabbing his arm again. "Please tell me what has happened to my husband."

"Things don't look good mam," he replied. "I really shouldn't tell you any details until we know more."

"Is he still alive?" Casey asked hesitantly. She wasn't sure if she wanted to know the answer to that question or not.

"Ken, they need you back in there," the fire chief ran over to tell the fireman talking to Casey.

"Yes sir," Ken replied as he put his mask back on and walked towards the building.

"Mrs. Cappington do you have a friend or family member you can call to come here to be with you?" the fire chief asked.

"Why? Are you going to tell me that Cappie is dead? Oh god, please don't tell me that he's dead," Casey replied frantically.

"As of right now he is still holding on from what I know," the chief replied.

"So what is taking so long?" Casey yelled, tears still flowing down her face.

"Please miss, I need you to stay as calm as you can right now while we do our work," the chief said softly.

"Calm?!? How in the hell can I be calm at a moment like this??" Casey yelled as she pushed the hair out of her face and began pacing in front of the fire chief.

"As I said, do you have anyone you can call?" the chief tried once again to ask her.

"NO!" Casey finally yelled, frustrated the chief kept asking her that ridiculous question.

And that was the point that Casey finally lost any control of the emotions she was trying to hold in before. She began sobbing uncontrollably and leaned her head against the fire chief's chest. He awkwardly put his arms around her to try and comfort her. Casey was showing no signs of easing her crying. Finally another fireman came over and pried her away from the chief so he could continue the rescue efforts of Cappie.

"Eric!" the chief yelled into the walkie talkie. "What is taking so long?"

"We've got oxygen on this guy," Eric replied through the walkie talkie. "But we're having a lot of trouble getting this board off that fell on him."

In a quick second, without anyone having time to react, Casey broke away from the fireman trying to comfort her and stole the walkie talkie out of the fire chief's hand.

"You listen here!" she yelled into the walkie talkie. "That guy is my husband Cappie! And you better hurry up and get him out here or—"

"That's enough," said the fire chief taking the walkie talkie back out of Casey's hand. "They are doing everything they can."

"Casey!" they heard someone yell behind them.

Casey turned around to find her dad running towards her.

"Dad!" she yelled running towards him and right into his arms.

"Shhhh, it's OK, calm down," Mr. Cartwright softly said as he stroked the back of Casey's head as she sobbed against his chest.

After a minute of crying in her dad's arms Casey was able to compose herself enough to break away.

"What are you doing here?" she asked wiping the tears off her face.

"I couldn't go back to sleep after you woke me up earlier tonight," he said. "So I went downstairs and turned on the TV to find breaking news of the restaurant on fire. I tried to call your cell phone but there was no answer."

"I left it in the car," Casey replied. "It's parked way down the road somewhere. What about Cadence? Does she know?"

"She's still sleeping soundly," Mr. Cartwright replied. "I woke your mom up to tell her what was going on. She stayed so we didn't have to wake Cadence up."

"What on earth am I going to tell her dad?" Casey asked as she began to cry again. "What am I going to tell this baby if he doesn't make it out alive?" she asked again as she rubbed her stomach.

"Now there is no time for questions like that," her dad stated. "We don't—"

Mr. Cartwright stopped mid-sentence as a group of firemen came walking out of the building. Casey turned around quickly knowing exactly why her dad had stopped speaking. They gripped each other tightly anticipating seeing Cappie brought out of the building any moment now.

And sure enough, a few second later four firemen walked out carrying Cappie on a backboard. His arm was limply hanging off the side of the board. Casey and her dad knew that things didn't look good. She tried her hardest at first to stay with her dad and let the firemen and paramedics do their job. But she eventually grew impatient. She let go of her dad's hand and ran past the yellow caution tape to the stretcher they had just laid Cappie on.

Casey had to stop with utter shock when she reached him. He had several burns on his arms and chest. His entire body was covered in the thick black smoke and he was gasping for air with everything he had. She wanted to reach for his hand but she was afraid to cause him any pain with the burns that covered them.

"He needs to be put on the breathing tube right away," said one of the paramedics.

As another paramedic searched through the bag for the right supplies Casey was able to get up to the head of the stretcher. Cappie looked at her immediately. She couldn't see his expression as he still had the oxygen mask covering his face but she could tell he was in a lot of pain and literally gasping for each breath of air.

"You're going to be OK sweetheart," said Casey as she stroked his hair. "I will make sure you get the best medical care possible. I am not going to lose you."

Then Cappie reached up slowly and removed the mask from his face.

"I—love—you--," he managed to utter out before returning the mask to his mouth to help his breathing.

"I love you too," Casey replied blinking the tears out of her eyes.

"Alright, I'm ready," said the paramedic as he prepared to put the breathing tube down Cappie's throat.

As soon as he removed the mask from Cappie's face Cappie quickly grabbed Casey's arm and pulled her closer to him.

"Ca—dence—and—ba—by--too," he said softly before taking his last gasp of air and releasing his grip on Casey's hand.

"No…." Casey said almost breathless herself.

The paramedics quickly put Cappie on the breathing tube and rushed him into the ambulance. Casey ran after them and attempted to get into the back to ride with them to the hospital.

"Sorry, he's too critical for you to come with us," said the paramedic. "We're taking him to Evanston."

And with that he slammed the door to the back of the ambulance in Casey's face and drove off with lights and sirens as fast as they could.

At first Casey just stood there dumbfounded and shocked. Her dad startled her out of her trance as he came up beside her.

"How was he?" he asked as he put his arm around her.

"Not good," Casey replied still staring at the faint lights which were now more than a mile down the road. "It was almost like Cappie was trying to say goodbye to me. He told me he loved me, Cadence and the baby."

"I don't think he meant it that way Case," Mr. Cartwright stated.

"Well I don't care how he meant it," Casey replied as she began to walk away. "There is no way he is going to die. I will not let it happen."

"Where are you going?" he asked hastily walking behind her.

"To the hospital," Casey replied. "I've got to go get my car."

"Here, mine's closer," Mr. Cartwright said pointing to his car just a few yards away. "I'll drive you."

"Well you better be fast then," said Casey as she followed her dad to the car. "And stop at my car on the way so I can pick up my cell phone."

* * *

Ashleigh was going crazy as she paced in the waiting room. First, she was worried that she really hadn't heard how Beaver was. When they got to the hospital he was rushed to one of the emergency trauma rooms and she was told to stay in the waiting area. Secondly, she was very surprised she hadn't seen Cappie rushed through the doors yet. She assumed he would be brought in right behind Beaver but it had been almost a half an hour and she hadn't seen anything.

"Mrs. Thompson," said a nurse coming into the waiting room.

"Yes, that's me," said Ashleigh as she rushed over to her.

"The doctor wanted me to let you know that your husband is stable right now," the nurse stated. "He's going to get a few x-rays and you should be able to see him in a little bit."

"OK, thanks," Ashleigh replied as the nurse turned and walked away.

Just as the nurse was out of sight Ashleigh saw the paramedics rush Cappie through the doors. She could see the breathing tube down his throat and the burns on his body. He looked a lot worse than Beaver did and she could only imagine how Casey was handling it at the time.

She expected Casey to come running in after Cappie but after a few seconds she realized Casey wasn't coming which she thought was strange. Ashleigh began to pace as she worried about Casey. What if she tried to drive herself to the hospital and got into a car accident? What if she was still at the restaurant site in too much distress to drive?

Ashleigh pulled out her cell phone and called Casey's phone. She answered after just one ring.

"Ash, I'm on my way," Casey answered the phone.

"Are you OK?" Ashleigh asked. "Should you be driving?"

"I'm not driving," Casey replied. "My dad came when he heard about the fire on the news. He's driving me."

"Thank goodness," Ashleigh replied. "They just brought Cappie in."

"How did he look?" Casey asked becoming choked up. "Is he still alive?"

"He's hanging in there as far as I could tell," Ashleigh replied.

"Alright, see you in a few minutes," Casey said.

"Bye hun," Ashleigh replied hanging up the phone.

Within the next five minutes Casey came running into the waiting room with her dad following closely behind.

"Oh Ash!" she exclaimed as they immediately ran into each other's arms.

The girls softly cried holding onto each other tightly for a minute before breaking away.

"How is Beaver?" Casey asked as she wiped the tears off her face yet again.

"The nurse said he is stable," Ashleigh replied. "I can see him after he's done getting some x-rays."

"I'm happy for you that he's OK," Casey tried her hardest to say to her friend.

"Thanks Case," Ashleigh replied softly. "And I'll keep Cappie in my thoughts for you. I'm just sure everything is going to be OK."

"I'm not so sure," said Casey as she sat down in one of the chairs. "I felt like Cappie was trying to say goodbye before they put him on the breathing tube. He told me he loved me, Cadence and the baby."

"Cappie always tells you he loves you Case," said Ashleigh. "He was probably just letting you know he's still thinking about you, even when he's sick."

"I hope you're right Ash," said Casey. "I'm just not sure if I can believe it."

"Casey I'm going to go and call your mom and let her know what is going on and that we are at the hospital," said Mr. Cartwright. "I'll be back in a few minutes."

"OK dad," said Casey as he left the waiting area.

"Do you want to go get something to drink?" Ashleigh asked. "It will probably be a little while before we know anything."

"No, I want to stay here and be available to the doctors at all times," Casey replied.

Before Ashleigh could say anything in return a doctor entered the waiting room. He was a younger man, probably in his thirties, wearing hospital scrubs and a surgical hat on his head.

"Is there a Mrs. Thompson here?" he asked.

"Me!" said Ashleigh as her and Casey stood up and walked over to the doctor.

"I'm Dr. Carlson and I've been taking care of your husband," said the doctor. "He unfortunately got a lot of smoke inhalation from being in the building so long with the fire. At this time he doesn't need to be on a breathing tube or anything but his lungs don't look the best from the x-rays we just took."

Casey instinctively put her arm around Ashleigh as she could tell Ashleigh's expression became more somber and water was filling her eyes.

"Other than that though," the doctor continued. "He only has a few minor first degree burns and no broken bones or anything. I'm going to admit him into the hospital to continue to monitor his lungs and make sure they improve rather than become worse."

"How long do you think that will take?" Ashleigh asked.

"It's hard to say," Dr. Carlson replied. "We are going to keep giving him medicine and breathing treatments to make his breathing easier but that's about all we can do for right now."

"Can I see him now?" Ashleigh asked.

"Of course," the doctor replied. "He's right this way."

Ashleigh looked back at Casey and motioned for her to come with her back to Beaver's room but Casey declined.

"I'm going to stay here, tell Beave I'm thinking about him though," said Casey.

"I will," Ashleigh replied as she waved back to Casey and followed the doctor back to Beaver's room.

Beaver was sitting up in the bed when Ashleigh walked into the room. He was in a hospital gown and still had the oxygen mask over his face. Ashleigh immediately ran up to his bed and wrapped her arms around him tightly. Beaver responded by putting his arms around her also. They stayed in their embrace for several minutes before Ashleigh finally backed away. Beaver reached up and wiped the tears off of Ashleigh's face and then lifted the mask off his own face.

"I'm OK," he said softly to her. "Everything's—OK."

He returned the mask to his face and took a couple of deep breaths.

"The doctor said your lungs are pretty damaged," said Ashleigh as she sat on the edge of his bed. "He's going to keep you in the hospital for a while until he knows they are getting better and your breathing has improved."

"It's already a lot—better," said Beaver through his mask.

"It is," said Ashleigh. "But I'm still worried about you. I want to make sure you are one hundred percent better before coming home."

Beaver just nodded his head as he lifted his mask off again. "How's Cappie?" he asked.

A frown instantly came over Ashleigh's face and Beaver noticed it right away.

"No…." he said thinking the worst.

"No, he's still alive," Ashleigh replied. "He's just not doing well at all. No one really knows any details at the moment but I saw the paramedics bring him in. He had some pretty bad burns and they had him on the breathing tube already."

"I tried—" Beaver began to say as a few tears escaped his eyes. "I tried to move—him but the board—came too fast and—it fell on him."

"Oh my," said Ashleigh as she realized why it probably took longer to bring Cappie out of the building.

"It's my—fault," said Beaver lifting his mask off again, tears continuing to stream down his face.

"Beave don't say that," said Ashleigh resting her hand on his leg. "It was an accident."

"It's true," he said. "I was—trying a new flambé—recipe and the flames—got too high and—"

Beaver wasn't able to finish his sentence. He placed the mask back on his face and buried his head into Ashleigh's shoulder. The thought that his carelessness could possibly kill his best friend was too much for him to handle at the moment.

Ashleigh noticed he was beginning to hyperventilate as he was crying and trying to gasp for air at the same time.

"Beave, please try to calm down," said Ashleigh rubbing his back. "We're not sure what exactly is wrong with Cappie and it's best not to jump to conclusions until we do. You need to focus on yourself and your recovery at the moment. I would hate for you to have to go on a breathing tube also."

Beaver was trying his best to calm down and regulate his breathing. He ran his hand over Ashleigh's stomach and instantly thought of his kids. As much as he was upset about what happened he had to admit that Ashleigh was right. He needed to think of his own recovery at the moment because he needs to be there for his kids more than anything in the world. But as much as he tried to focus on himself and his family, he couldn't help but think about Cappie and how Casey was holding up at the moment. If anything bad happened to his best friend he wasn't sure if he would be able to live with the guilt that would linger for years and years to come.

* * *

Casey sat in the waiting room by herself just staring at her hands in her lap. She was beginning to get more concerned about Cappie. It had been a while since she arrived and she still knew nothing about what was going on with him. The thought of losing Cappie crossed her mind and instantly the tears formed in her eyes. She put her hand on her stomach and sighed. If she lost Cappie, how on earth would she be able to raise a new baby on her own? And how could she even begin to explain what happen to his or her father when he or she was old enough? And then there was Cadence who would be absolutely devastated if anything bad happened to Cappie. She is daddy's little girl, there is no doubt about that. The two of them are like best friends, a special love between a father and a daughter.

And of course she had to consider how she would handle not having Cappie herself. There was no way she could ever love another man like she loves Cappie. He is also her best friend and her rock through anything and everything. Losing him might just be the end of her also.

Casey quickly shook her head trying to get those negative thoughts out of her. Until she hears otherwise she is going to think the best for Cappie. He may have a long road to recovery but as long as he is alive they should be able to handle anything.

"Case?" her dad asked bringing her back to reality. "Are you OK?"

"Yeah, I'm fine dad," said Casey with a small yawn. "Just waiting to hear something from the doctors about Cappie."

"I talked to your mom," he said sitting in the chair next to Casey. "She hasn't been able to go back to sleep either. I told her it would be best for her to stay at home though. I don't think Cadence needs to be here at the moment with everything that is going on."

"I agree," said Casey. "At least not until we know what is really going on."

Mr. Cartwright put his arm around his daughter and began rubbing her back.

"You know, I was in your position once," he said trying anything he could say to ease Casey's pain at the moment. "When your mom and I dated for about a year she got into a really bad car accident. Someone ran a red light and hit her on the side of the car dead on. At first the doctors weren't sure if she was going to make it or not. But she fought hard and went through months and months of rehab for all the broken bones she had. But now looking at her you would never know that something like that happened to her."

"Dad, what is your point here?" Casey asked, somewhat annoyed her dad was bringing up old stories at a time like this.

"My point is that bad things happen to good people all the time," he replied. "Modern medicine is amazing and I know the doctors are going to do everything they can for Cappie. And I know that Cappie is a fighter just like your mom was. He's got a child on the way and I know his family is everything worth fighting for."

"Aw, thanks dad," said Casey leaning over and giving him a hug. "I really needed to hear that."

"I know honey," he said squeezing her tighter. "I know."

Just as they were letting go from their hug another doctor entered the waiting room. Since Casey and Mr. Cartwright were the only two in the waiting room at the moment they immediately stood up and walked over to him.

"Are you Mrs. Cappington?" the doctor asked.

"Yes," said Casey eying the older man with a long white coat standing in front of her holding Cappie's chart. "And this is my father," she said putting her hand on her dad's arm.

"Well I'm Doctor Mason and I have some news on your husband I would like to discuss if you could have a seat," he said directing Casey and her dad to a couple of seats in the waiting room.

Casey almost didn't sit down. She knew things couldn't be good when doctors had family members sit down. She has watched enough medical dramas in her day, sitting down with the doctor was never a good thing. But in compliance with his request she sat down and her dad immediately grabbed her hand and squeezed it.

"We've been running several tests to figure out everything that is going on with your husband," Dr. Mason stated as he sat in the chair across from Casey. "There are several things at the moment that I'm concerned about. First, he has pretty extensive burns on his arms and chest area. Some of these burns are possibly second or third degree which are very serious and we need to do everything we can to prevent any possible infection to the wounds. Secondly is his breathing. We have him on the ventilator right now because he's not able to breathe on his own. Not only do I see a lot of smoke inhalation on his chest x-ray but I also see spots where the heat and maybe even flames have burned a few spots in his lungs. While these should heal on their own, they do take a while. And finally—"

"Oh god, there's more," Casey sighed wondering how much more awful news she could take.

The doctor continued, ignoring Casey's remark. "I'm assuming when the board fell on him he either hit the ground pretty hard or the board itself caused the injury but he does have a fracture in two of the vertebrae in his back."

Hearing that caused Casey's breath to hitch in her throat. "Does that mean he's, um, paralyzed?" she asked after regaining her breath.

"At this time, no," Dr. Mason replied. "But he's going to need surgery to repair the bones and stabilize them from moving to injure the spinal cord. Right now if he makes a wrong move he could cause the bones to move and ultimately become paralyzed."

"Oh wow," said Casey sinking farther into her chair.

"Given the severity of his injuries we are not very equipped at this hospital to care for him," the doctor continued. "So I have arranged for Life Flight to fly him to the University of Chicago Medical Center where they are better equipped to handle his injuries."

"Where is that exactly?" Mr. Cartwright asked.

"It's about a forty-five minute drive south of here," Dr. Mason replied. "They have one of the best neurosurgeons in the country who is going to operate on his back and they also have a burn unit which will address his burns and keep him in as sterile of an environment as possible."

"I can't believe all this is happening," Casey stated, the tears beginning to build up in her eyes. "What are his chances for survival at this point? Are things really bad?"

"There are just so many things going on with him at the moment Mrs. Cappington that I can't really answer that question," Dr. Mason replied. "Once he has surgery and the doctors can assess his burns at UCMC they should be able to give you a better idea of what his prognosis is."

"When is he leaving?" Casey asked as she stood up. "Can I see him before he leaves?"

"The helicopter will be here in just a couple minutes," Dr. Mason replied. "I'll take you back quickly to see him."

Casey grabbed her dad's hand as the two of them followed Dr. Mason into the trauma room where Cappie was. He was lying motionless in the hospital bed. He was hooked up to several machines making all kinds of noises throughout the room. Casey immediately went up to him but given everything the doctor just told her she was afraid to even touch Cappie. But she needed to touch him to let him know she was there and for her own piece of mind. She slowly reached her hand up and stroked the side of his face and then moved a couple strands of his hair out of his face.

"Hey Cap, it's me," she said through her sniffles and tears now running down her face. "The doctors just told me that they are going to move you to another hospital that can care for you better than they can here. You're pretty banged up right now but I know it's only a matter of time before you get through this and you'll be up walking and playing with Cadence in no time."

Casey paused as she really wasn't sure what else to say. It was so strange for her talking to Cappie without him responding to her. It was then she realized how much she missed seeing his genuine smile and his beautiful blue eyes when she talked to him.

She began to hear the flight paramedics talking with the doctors outside the door.

"They are here to get you now Cap," said Casey. "I love you more than anything in the world and I promise to be there as soon as I can to see you. Just promise me that you'll stay strong and fight."

Casey leaned down and kissed Cappie softly on the cheek. Within seconds the flight team came into the room to get Cappie ready.

"Bye Cap," said Casey softly as Mr. Cartwright again wrapped his arms around her.

The two of them stood there for several minutes as they watched the team prepare Cappie for the flight to UCMC. Casey waved one last goodbye to Cappie as they pushed him out of the room.

"Should we start heading down to the other hospital now?" Mr. Cartwright asked.

"Yeah," Casey sighed. "I just want to find Ashleigh really quick and let her know what is going on first."

"OK, I'll go pull the car around," said Mr. Cartwright as he softly kissed Casey on the forehead and walked out of the room.

Casey made her way out after him looking in several of the rooms searching for Ashleigh. She finally found Beaver's room a few doors down from the one Cappie was in. She peered in the window of the door to see the two of them cuddled and sleeping soundly in the bed. It was at the moment for probably the first time since she's known Ashleigh that she was jealous of her. She was jealous that Ashleigh was able to be wrapped up and cuddled with Beaver and everything was going to be OK with him. Why did Cappie have to be so much more injured than Beaver? Why did these things only seem to happen to her?

She contemplated for a bit as to whether she would walk in the room or not to talk with them. But she ultimately decided against it. Given her feelings at the moment it was probably best not to talk with them. She needed to worry about Cappie and get down to the other hospital as soon as possible. She could always call Ashleigh later to let her know what was going on.

So with that she turned away from Beaver's room and began walking towards the front door. There was no doubt that she was scared out of her mind at the moment. Her heart was racing and she wanted nothing more than to wake up and find out that all of this was a nightmare. But after pinching herself a couple of times on the way out of the hospital she realized that what she was experiencing was very real. Her life as she knew it changed with just a blink of her eye. In a matter of hours she went from having a great time with some new friends at her book club to her husband coming close to being paralyzed or even dying. She realized at this point there was nothing more she could do but just pray that Cappie was going to be OK and make it through all of this. It was an awful feeling of hopelessness that overcame her as she reached her dad's car. A feeling that she feared would be lingering around for days and days to come.

* * *

_**A/N: So the messages for short or long chapters were pretty mixed....LoL. I honestly thought everyone would want shorter chapters more often but it seems like more people actually like the longer chapters. So I've decided to do mostly longer chapters but I may mix in a few shorter ones here and there just to keep the updates consistant. I hope this chapter wasn't too much of a cliffhanger for everyone. At least we know where Cappie is and what is going on with him at this point in time. Keep the awesome reviews coming....I was excited to receive quite a few with the last chapter and even a few new people and others I hadn't heard from in a while so thanks so much! Hope everyone is having a nice day.....I'm thinking the next update will be this weekend sometime but that just depends on how much free time I'll have to write or not. Loves!**_


	125. Halfway Gone

HALFWAY GONE

"Casey, Casey sweetheart," said Mr. Cartwright gently shaking Casey in the passenger's seat.

"Huh?" Casey said in a sleepy voice. "What is going on?"

"You fell asleep on the way to the hospital," Mr. Cartwright replied. "We're here now."

"Oh my gosh, how can I fall asleep at a time like this," Casey replied sitting up straighter in the seat.

"It is almost four in the morning honey," Mr. Cartwright stated. "And you certainly have been through a lot tonight."

"I have a strange feeling things have just started," said Casey with a sigh as she opened the car door.

Mr. Cartwright joined her as the two of them walked into the hospital. Casey walked up to the front desk and the secretary directed them upstairs to the surgical intensive care and burn unit. Once there they found the nurse who was in charge of Cappie.

"Can you tell me what is going on?" Casey asked.

"He is actually in surgery right now for his back," the nurse replied. "The doctors wanted to take care of that before anything else."

"Do you know how long he's going to be in surgery?" Casey asked.

"It's really hard to tell," the nurse replied. "It really just depends on how much work the surgeon has to do. Why don't you guys go have a seat in the waiting room and I will keep you updated as I know things."

"OK, thanks," said Casey softly as her and her dad slowly walked into the waiting room and sat down.

"Did Ashleigh say how Beaver was?" Mr. Cartwright asked.

"He's alright I guess," said Casey as she looked towards the ground.

"What do you mean you guess?" Mr. Cartwright replied. "I thought you talked to her."

"I was going to," Casey stated. "But I looked in the room to find Ashleigh and Beaver cuddling on the bed and I didn't want to bother them."

"Oh," Mr. Cartwright nodded.

"And of course Beaver is OK," Casey continued. "He doesn't have burns on his body, he doesn't have a broken back, he isn't on a breathing tube. Of course he's OK."

"Case, it is great that Beaver is OK, why the animosity?" Mr. Cartwright asked.

"Because I don't understand why two people can be in the same fire but have two very different outcomes," said Casey as she stood up and began to pace. "And why does Cappie have to be the one who has all these problems?"

"I know you're upset honey," said Mr. Cartwright as he watched Casey walked around the waiting room. "But that is no reason to be upset with Ashleigh and Beaver. What happened is not their fault. Ashleigh is still your best friend and the two of you really need to be there for each other at a time like this."

"Well that's kind of hard with her up at Evanston and me all the way down here at UCMC," said Casey somewhat bitterly.

Mr. Cartwright didn't respond and just gave Casey a disapproving look. Casey paced around the room a few more times before plopping back down in the chair next to her dad.

"I'm sorry dad," she said with a sigh. "My emotions and nerves are just all over the place right now. It's hard for me to be happy for Ashleigh when my world is turned upside down. I know it's not her fault. I just wish Cappie was as healthy as Beaver is at the moment."

"I know Case, I know," said Mr. Cartwright as he put his arm around her and Casey leaned her head on his shoulder. "Maybe you should call Ashleigh though and let her know what is going on."

"I think I'll let her call me," Casey replied. "She was sleeping when I saw her and it is so early in the morning. I'm sure she'll call me when she wakes up and is wondering where I am."

"OK," Mr. Cartwright replied rubbing his hand up and down Casey's arm.

They sat like that for several minutes before Casey began to hear light snores coming from her dad. It was no wonder he had fallen asleep. It was now nearing five in the morning and both of them were exhausted both physically and mentally from everything that has happened. Casey was at least able to sleep a little bit in the car on the trip down to UCMC. Mr. Cartwright barely had any sleep that night.

She slowly wiggled herself out from under her dad and went to the coffee pot in the waiting room. She poured herself a glass and fixed it just the way she liked it. She sat in a chair in the corner of the waiting room for the next couple of hours. She tried to fall asleep but she wasn't able to as she kept looking for the doctor to walk in at any moment. So she sat there alone in her thoughts but not really thinking about anything. The only thing on her mind was Cappie and hoping he would come out of surgery OK.

A couple more people had joined them in the waiting room as the sun began to come up and visiting hours were about to start. It was now nearing seven in the morning and Casey was becoming more and more impatient. She had already gone through four cups of coffee and had to force herself to stop knowing coffee was not the best for the baby. But it was almost comforting to her as she sipped the warm liquid. It reminded her of the warmth she always felt with Cappie's arms wrapped tightly around her. She just hoped she was going to be able to feel that again sooner than later.

Around seven thirty Mr. Cartwright finally woke up and apologized to Casey for falling asleep. She understood though and explained to him that nothing really happened while he was dozing off. Mr. Cartwright was fixing himself a cup of coffee when the same nurse the two of them had talked to hours before walked into the waiting room. Casey immediately ran up to her.

"He just came out of surgery," the nurse said sensing Casey's eagerness to know something. "Myself and one of the other nurses are going to work on getting him cleaned up and assess his burns. The doctor said he was going to chart a few things and then be out to talk to you about the surgery."

"Will you come get us as soon as we're allowed to see him?" Casey asked.

"Yes, of course," the nurse replied. "It should only be another half an hour or so."

"OK, thanks," said Casey as the nurse walked back over to the nurse's station.

Just as Casey and her dad sat back down in the waiting room chairs, Casey's phone rang.

"It's Ashleigh," she said looking at it.

Mr. Cartwright gave her an encouraging look to answer it and Casey did so.

"Hello," she said.

"Casey! Where are you?!" exclaimed Ashleigh. "I woke up and asked the nurse where you and Cappie had gone and she said you went to another hospital."

"Yes, we're at the University of Chicago Medical Center," Casey replied. "Cappie is in a lot worse shape than the doctors originally thought I guess so they transferred him down here."

"What is wrong with him?" Ashleigh asked with a sudden shakiness in her voice.

"Well he just got out of surgery for a broken back," Casey replied. "And I think he's still on the breathing tube because his breathing isn't very good."

"Wow Case, I had no idea," said Ashleigh. "Why didn't you come tell me what was going on before you left?"

"Oh, well, everything was in such a hurry that I didn't have time," Casey lied. "I just wanted to get here as fast as I could since Cappie was way ahead of me in the helicopter."

"Is your dad still with you?" Ashleigh asked.

"Yeah," Casey replied just as she saw the doctor walk into the waiting room. "Ash, I have to go, the doctor just walked in. I'll call you later."

"OK—"

Casey didn't even let Ashleigh finish her sentence as she hung up the phone and quickly made her way over to the doctor.

"Are you Mrs. Cappington?" he asked.

"Yes, that's me," Casey replied. "Can you tell me how my husband is doing?"

"The surgery went very well," said the doctor. "I had to put in some plates and screws to stabilize the broken bones in his back but the spinal cord is intact so he should still have full use of his legs."

"Oh, that's wonderful news," said Casey taking a deep breath out.

"I'm going to have him wear a back brace when he is up for a while just to protect him from any sharp movements," the doctor continued. "But from an orthopedic standpoint he is good. I was concerned about his lungs during the surgery but he did just fine. It's ultimately up to the lung doctor but I anticipate him being able to come off the breathing tube in a few days."

"Thank you doctor," said Casey.

"Let me know if you have any questions," the doctor replied. "The nurses should have my pager number."

"OK," said Casey as she shook his hand and watched him walk out of the waiting room.

"Good news?" Mr. Cartwright asked as Casey sat down next to him again and noticed the slight smile on her face.

"Surgery went well," said Casey. "That doctor even said his lungs did better than he anticipated during the surgery so he may be able to come off the breathing tube pretty soon."

"That is good news," said Mr. Cartwright. "I knew Cappie was going to fight through this."

"I just really want to see him," said Casey with a sigh.

It was about twenty minutes later when the nurse came back into the waiting room to get Casey and Mr. Cartwright.

"His heart rate is a little higher than we would like," said the nurse as they walked towards Cappie's room. "But other than that things went well when we cleaned him up."

"Why would his heart rate go up like that?" Casey asked.

"It could be a lot of different things," the nurse replied. "It could be from just the general stress from surgery or if he was in pain while we were cleaning off the burns. I did give him some morphine though before we started."

"OK," Casey responded as they reached the door to Cappie's room.

She walked in and quickly made her way over to his bed. He looked like a completely different person than he did when she saw him last. The nurses had gotten all the black smoke off of him and his arms were all bandaged up to protect the burns. He was still on the breathing tube and machines were beeping all around him.

"Hey Cap," she said taking his hand into hers and squeezing it firmly.

She instantly got that empty feeling inside of her as she knew he wasn't able to respond to her.

"The doctor said your surgery went really well," she continued. "And the nurse got you all cleaned up. You look much better than you did before."

The beeping of the machines was still the only noise that filled the room. Casey felt the tears begin to swell up in her eyes. Mr. Cartwright could tell she was becoming emotional and walked over to her.

"My dad is here Cap," said Casey as the tears began to fall down her cheeks. "We've been keeping my mom updated as she is watching Cadence for me right now. Ashleigh and Beaver also wanted me to tell you that they send a lot of prayers your way."

The silence was growing harder and harder for Casey to take. Even Mr. Cartwright was speechless in the moment. He knew he had to comfort his daughter but he just couldn't find the words to say to make things better.

Just then Cappie's heart rate began to increase a little higher. The beeping of the heart monitor grew louder as his heart rate continued to increase.

"What is going on?" said Casey as a few nurses came rushing into the room.

"His heart rate is getting dangerously high," said one of the nurses. "I'm going to give him some medicine to try and bring it back down."

Casey watched as the nurse pushed some medicine through Cappie's IV. For the next minute everyone in the room stared at the monitor hoping his heart rate would start to go down. But it didn't.

"We need to get Dr. Felix in here right away," said one of the nurses as she ran to the phone to page him.

Casey let go of Cappie's hand and backed away so the nurse's could continue to work on him.

"Why isn't the medicine working?" Casey cried as she leaned her head on Mr. Cartwright.

No one answered her question as they were all busy trying everything they could to bring Cappie's heart rate back down. Less than a minute later Dr. Felix came into the room.

"What is going on?" he asked.

"We can't get his heart rate to go down doctor," said the nurse. "I gave him a bolus of heart meds to try and bring it down but it didn't work."

"Go ahead and get the defibrillator ready," Dr. Felix instructed one of the other nurses. "We're probably going to have to shock his heart back into a normal rhythm."

"Oh god," said Casey as she clenched onto her dad harder.

"Nurse let's get the family out of here," said the doctor. "We'll come and get you when he's more stable."

The nurse had to practically push Casey out of the room. She didn't want to go anywhere. She wanted to be there to Cappie and make sure things were OK. Leaving his side yet again was killing her on the inside.

"I will come get you as soon as we know something," said the nurse as she turned to go back into Cappie's room.

"I am not going back in that waiting room," said Casey as she began walking down the hall.

"Where are you going honey?" said Mr. Cartwright following after her.

"I don't know dad!" Casey yelled. "I just know that I can't sit in the four blank walls of that waiting room anymore!"

Casey took a few more steps before she lightly punched the wall in the hallway and collapsed to sit on the floor. A couple of the lights in the hallway were broken so the dimly lit area fit her current emotions perfectly. Another light was flickering like it was close to burning out also. She thought of that light as Cappie who was toiling close to either life or death at this point. It didn't help when the light finally gave up and burned completely out. It was at that moment Casey really began to cry. She was crying so hard it was hard for her to even catch her breath. What if Cappie was like that light? In just a matter of seconds he could be gone, gone from her life forever. The pain she was feeling in her body emotionally and physically was almost too much for her to take. She hadn't realized until that moment how crucial Cappie was to her life. She began to feel like she has taken him almost for granted; never realizing how much she needs him as much as he needs her.

"Case," she heard her dad say next to her. She hadn't even realized he sat down on the floor next to her.

"What?" Casey asked trying to control her crying.

"You're phone was just ringing," Mr. Cartwright replied.

Casey was shocked she hadn't even heard it ring. Her crying must have covered the noise of the ringtone as it played in her pocket. She took a few deep breaths trying to calm herself down as she reached into her pocket and pulled the phone out. She was surprised to see that her missed call was actually from Cappie's parents. She probably should have called them last night about Cappie but everything was just happening so quickly she hadn't thought about it.

"It was Cappie's parents," she said looking at her dad.

"Do you think they heard about Cappie?" Mr. Cartwright asked.

"I don't see how they could," said Casey as she opened the phone back up and called Mr. and Mrs. Cappington back.

"Casey is that you?" Mrs. Cappington answered after just one ring.

"Yeah," Casey replied.

"Oh thank you so much for calling back," she said. "I tried calling Cappie's phone several times but he wasn't answering."

"Well that's because—" Casey began.

"I have the best news!" Mrs. Cappington interrupted her.

"Huh?" Casey said in a confused tone.

"Tobias and I have been picked to go on this exclusive safari in the African jungle!" she said excitedly. "We leave later tonight! We just wanted to tell you guys that we'll probably be gone for a while and there really won't be any way to get a hold of us."

Casey's heart plummeted to the ground. Cappie's mom sounded so excited at the moment and in seconds she was going to crush all that happiness.

"That's great, but I kind of have to tell you something," she said softly.

"Oh my, is something wrong with the new baby? Are you OK?" Mrs. Cappington asked.

"Yes, myself and the baby are fine," Casey replied. "It's Cappie that's not doing well."

"What do you mean not doing well?" Mrs. Cappington asked. "Put him on the phone."

"I can't," Casey replied as the tears began to swell up in her eyes. "Cappie is in the hospital right now on a breathing tube."

"What?!" Mrs. Cappington exclaimed. "What happened?"

"There was a fire at the new restaurant last night," said Casey fighting back her tears. "He and Beaver were both trapped in the building for a while before the firemen were able to get them out. He had surgery last night to repair his broken back but he's still in pretty critical condition."

"Oh my gosh," said Mrs. Cappington. "Tobias! Come here! Cappie is in trouble!"

Casey listened as Mrs. Cappington filled him in on what was going on with Cappie.

"Tobias wants to know how he is right now," said Mrs. Cappington into the phone.

"The doctors are working on him right now because they are having trouble getting his heart rate down," said Casey as she stood up and began to walk back and forth in the hallway. "The surgeon said he was probably going to have to be on the ventilator for a few more days but other than that I don't know a whole lot."

"Do you have the number to the hospital there?" Mrs. Cappington asked.

"Yeah, it's 773-702-1004," Casey replied. "We are actually not at Evanston near our house where I had Cadence. He was taken on Life Flight down to the University Of Chicago Medical Center. Where are you guys at right now?"

"Oh we're still in Maine," Mrs. Cappington replied. "We were just about to head out."

"That is great," Casey replied. "I know Cappie will just love to have you here to be with him."

"No darling, I didn't mean we were headed out to Chicago," Mrs. Cappington replied. "I meant we were headed out to New York. That is where we are catching our plane to Africa."

Casey began to clench her free hand in a fist becoming infuriated that Cappie's mom and dad were actually considering not coming to see him.

"But you're coming here now right?" she asked making sure she didn't read his mom wrong.

"Well I'm not sure," Mrs. Cappington replied. "By the time we get there Cappie will probably be awake and doing just fine. And this trip to Africa is a once in a lifetime experience. Tobias and I have applied to go for years now and this is the first year we've been accepted."

"Are you kidding me?" Casey said in an angry tone. "You're not coming here?"

"It's just—" Mrs. Cappington began.

"No, I don't want to hear it," said Casey interrupting her and raising her voice to a yell. "Your son is lying in a hospital bed fighting for his life and you find it more important to go on a trip to Africa?! Don't you want to be here when he wakes up and be with your SON as a FAMILY?!"

"Casey, you are his family now sweetie," said Mrs. Cappington like Casey's words and tone of voice weren't even effecting her. "We have the hospital number. We can check in often on him to make sure everything is still going OK."

Casey finally lost it. She finally got enough courage in that moment to say the words she had wanted to say to April ever since the two of them disapproved of her and Cappie having Cadence.

"I am so sick and tired of you two putting your own lives over Cappie!" she yelled. "He is your son for Christ's sake, your flesh and blood. You guys have Cadence whom you haven't seen since the day she was born! And Cappie told me how you reacted when he told you about the new baby. And let me tell you something, you have no idea how incredible of a son you have. If anything, he's a hell of a lot more mature than the two of you will ever be."

Casey didn't even have the energy to listen to Cappie's mom reply to her outburst. She quickly hit the end button on the phone and threw it on the ground.

"Casey, there is no need to—"

"Shut up dad," said Casey interrupting him. "You have no idea how those people are. How can two people hardly care about their own son? How can someone be a parent and not come running as soon as they hear their son is in the hospital? It just doesn't make any sense to me."

Casey began to pace again as the tears started to fall down her face.

"Not every parent is the same," her dad replied trying to get Casey to calm down. "They just handle things differently."

"No, they handle things according to what is best for them and their beliefs," said Casey as she bent down to pick up the phone she had thrown. "Cappie told me that they were supposed to come here for Cadence's birthday next week. So I guess their original intentions of calling were to tell us that they weren't coming. No surprise there I guess."

Casey looked down at the cracked screen on her phone as she heard footsteps coming down the hall. It was Dr. Felix.

"Please tell me that everything is OK," she said running up to him.

"We had to shock his heart twice," he said looking at Casey. "But we were able to get it down to a normal rhythm finally."

"Thank goodness," said Casey with a sigh of relief.

"I did get his lab work back though and it looks like he may have the beginnings of an infection," Dr. Felix continued. "We have started him on antibiotics to try to kill the infection before it becomes very big."

"OK," said Casey nodding her head.

"Anyone who now goes in his room will need to put a gown, gloves and mask on to prevent the spread of the infection," he added. "And I'm sorry Miss but with you being pregnant I have to recommend you avoid seeing him altogether. The baby could be at a severe risk if you end up getting the infection."

Casey took a step back and gave the doctor a dumbfounded look.

"I have to be in there," she said almost breathless. "I have to see my husband."

"It will only be for the next twenty four hours or so," said Dr. Felix. "Once he gets a couple of doses of the antibiotics in him you should be fine to go and see him. I just want to protect you and the baby as much as I want to protect your husband also."

"This is not happening," said Casey turning away and walking down the hall.

"Thanks doctor," said Mr. Cartwright. "I'll try and calm her down. She's just really having a hard time with everything."

"I understand," said Dr. Felix as he turned to walk down the hall the other way. "I'll let you know when I know something more."

"Case! Casey!" said Mr. Cartwright as he ran down the hall after Casey.

"Leave me alone dad, I just want to be alone," said Casey.

"You know that's not true," Mr. Cartwright replied still following her down the hall. "You're in no condition to be alone right now."

"Well what in the hell am I supposed to do?" Casey asked as she turned around quickly, a mixture of sadness and anger showed in her eyes. "There is nothing I can do to help Cappie get any better, I can't even go in and hold his hand for crying out loud! And then his parents want nothing to do with him, Ashleigh and Beaver are an hour away at another hospital, Cadence is at your house so what does that leave me? Alone. I am so alone and I have never felt like this before and it's eating me up inside. I don't know how to handle this dad. I don't know if I can deal with this."

"Casey, you are one of the strongest women I know," said Mr. Cartwright as he put his hands on Casey's arms. "Look at what you have done with your life. Surprise pregnancies have ruined so many lives before. But look at you, you have made a life for yourself and come full circle with everything."

"But it wasn't just me dad," said Casey. "I couldn't have done any of that without Cappie. You don't understand. I have depended on Cappie for the past seven years of my life in one way or another. How am I supposed to do this without him? How am I supposed to be so strong for him when I feel like I can barely hold myself together?"

Casey began to sob again as she leaned her head down on her father's chest. All Mr. Cartwright could do was wrap his arms around her tightly and let her cry. As much as he hated to admit his daughter had become do dependent on one person in her life, she was right. The house, the new car, the strength and support to raise a child, they were all there because of Cappie. It was then he realized the harsh reality of what would happen if for some reason Cappie didn't make it. And he questioned that if it did happen, would his daughter even be able to make it through?

* * *

_**A/N: So I know I said I would try to get this chapter up over the weekend but Monday is close enough right? LoL! And I figured it would be nice to have something Greek related on a Monday since the show is currently on hiatus. **_

_**Thank you so so so much to the new reviewers of the last chapter! Your reviews were fantastic and really have motivated me to write.....I'm almost done with the next chapter so it will probably be up sooner than you think :0) **_

_**Sarah-not sure when Greek is going to return but I do know they aren't going to start shooting the new season until the middle of May so it probably will be a while before we'll know when it's going to come back on :0(**_

_**As always, let me know what you think of this chapter! Thanks!**_


	126. Heart of a Child

HEART OF A CHILD

Mr. Cartwright sat in the waiting room alone and thinking about the fragile state his daughter was in at the moment. Casey instructed him to be with Cappie in his room since she couldn't be there. He had been there for about an hour when the nurses suggested he leave while they changed the bandages on Cappie's burns again. He thought he would find Casey in the waiting room when he came out but she wasn't anywhere to be found. So he sat down and figured he would wait until she came back as she was probably grabbing some food from the cafeteria or going for a short walk.

"Dad?" a voice said interrupting his thoughts.

Mr. Cartwright heard the familiar voice and turned towards the waiting room door.

"Rusty! What are you doing here?" he said standing up and giving Rusty a hug.

"Mom called and told me Cappie and Beaver were both hurt when the restaurant caught on fire," Rusty replied. "I came as soon as I heard. How are they?"

"Well as far as I know Beaver is OK," Mr. Cartwright replied. "He is still at the Evanston hospital recovering. Cappie, on the other hand, isn't doing so well. He had surgery to repair some broken bones in his back last night and we've had a couple of scares today with his heart rate going extremely high."

"Is he conscious?" Rusty asked.

"No," Mr. Cartwright replied sadly. "He's on a ventilator because of all the smoke he inhaled. We were told that he may be able to come off of it in a few days but they just found out he has the beginnings of an infection and with the heart problems he's been having, I just don't see that happening."

"Wow, Casey must be a wreck," said Rusty looking around the waiting room. "Is she in with Cappie? Can I go see them?"

"Actually Casey isn't in with Cappie," his dad replied. "She's not allowed to visit Cappie since she's pregnant. The doctor doesn't want to risk the infection being spread to her and the baby causing a lot of problems."

"She must be devastated," said Rusty.

"You have no idea," Mr. Cartwright stated. "She wants me to stay in there with Cappie as much as I can since she isn't allowed to go in. I'm on a break right now because the nurses needed to change the bandages on his burns."

"So do you know where Casey is then?" Rusty asked.

"I don't have a clue," Mr. Cartwright replied. "All I know is that I have the car keys so unless she took a cab somewhere she's got to be around the hospital."

"Mind if I go look for her?" Rusty asked.

"Be my guest," he replied. "I'm just waiting here until the nurses tell me it's OK to go back in."

"OK, I'll catch up with you later then," said Rusty as he walked out of the waiting room to go and find Casey.

The first place he tried was the gift shop. When Casey was in high school she always told him shopping helped calm her down and made her feel better. But he searched all of the aisles with no signs of Casey. He then tried the cafeteria thinking maybe Casey had stopped to get something to eat or drink. But after a few minutes of searching the crowded dining room he came up empty handed. Down the hall from the cafeteria was a small chapel which he thought Casey may be in. There were several people praying and crying but none of them were Casey. He was about to check outside to see if she had gone for a walk but something in the conference room next to the chapel caught his eye. And sure enough, on a closer look he saw the blond hair and fair skin that could only belong to his sister.

He lightly knocked on the door as he opened it so he didn't startle her too much. When the door opened completely Casey saw exactly who it was and went running full force up to Rusty.

"Oh my god Rusty you have no idea how good it is to see you!" exclaimed Casey. "I can't believe you're here!"

"Case, two of my best friends in the entire world are hurt," Rusty replied squeezing her tightly. "There was no excuse for me not to be here."

"You have no idea how happy I am to see you," said Casey as she backed away from Rusty. "I guess I can only cry on dad so much."

"Yeah, I heard you aren't allowed to see Cappie," said Rusty as each of them sat down in the conference chairs. "That must be really hard for you."

"It's like I'm dying inside," said Casey as she grabbed a tissue from the box in front of her. "I am just like stuck with nowhere to go. There is no way I can sit in that waiting room for another twenty four hours without seeing Cappie. I think I'll go crazy."

"They've got to have a special mask or something you can wear so you can see him," said Rusty. "It just doesn't make any sense."

"I already asked," said Casey without hesitation. "The nurse told me they really don't make such a thing but if things got really bad with Cappie they would find a way to get me in the room somehow."

"Well let's just hope that won't have to happen," said Rusty. "But if need be, I could use my geeky science knowledge and whip something up for you."

"Thanks," said Casey with a half smile.

The two of them sat in silence for a couple of minutes exchanging short glances, each of them unsure of what to say at that point.

"Russ, I'm scared," Casey finally said looking up at him with tears streaming down her cheeks. "Can't you do something to make everything alright?"

"I wish I could Case," Rusty replied. "I'm surprised you aren't next door in the chapel praying and talking to God or something."

"I was there at first," said Casey. "But I felt weird because we'd never really gone to church or anything growing up. I didn't know what to say."

"Case, you just talk," said Rusty with a small laugh. "There is no right or wrong thing to do when you're talking to God."

"Well why didn't we go to church growing up?" Casey asked.

"I don't know," Rusty replied shrugging his shoulders. "I guess it was something mom and dad decided not to introduce us to. All parents are different with the choices they make for their children."

"Ew, you sound like dad," said Casey glaring at Rusty.

"Was it something I said?" Rusty asked.

"No, it's something I said," said Casey with a sigh.

"Now you've lost me," said Rusty now glancing back at Casey.

"I kind of blew up at Cappie's parents on the phone earlier today," said Casey. "They've decided a safari to Africa is more important than coming to see Cappie."

"That can't be true," said Rusty questioning what Casey was saying.

"No, it is true," Casey replied. "And I completely lost it on them. I told them that they didn't appreciate Cappie like they should and that they only think of themselves when making decisions in their lives."

"Ouch, you really did blow up at them," said Rusty.

"Well I was angry," Casey replied.

"You know what mom used to say Case, anger is one letter short of danger," said Rusty.

"Mom never said that," said Casey rolling her eyes.

"Hmm, OK, maybe it was Sesame Street then," Rusty replied with a smirk.

It was then that Casey began to laugh. And what started off as a small laugh soon turned into an outright uproar. Rusty just sat there staring at her. He smiled slightly himself but just at the way his sister was acting. He had no idea what she was even laughing about.

"Do you realize how silly you sound?" Casey said between her laughs. "Anger is one letter short of danger? Where do you come up with these things? You sound like a children's book I read to Cadence last week."

"I don't know, it's true though," Rusty replied in a serious tone of voice. "You're anger could have really made Cappie's parents upset and they may never want to talk to you again."

"Or my words could have hit them enough to realize what they are doing is wrong and come here to see their son," Casey stated in a more hopeful tone of voice.

"I guess we'll just have to see," Rusty replied as he looked down at the table.

There was a brief silence between the two of them.

"Thanks Russ," Casey finally said.

"For what?' Rusty asked looking up at her.

"For making me laugh," said Casey as she wiped the tears out of her eyes caused by her laughing so hard. "I really needed that."

"And here I was trying to be serious," said Rusty with a smirk. "But I guess I'll take anything at this point to make you feel a little better."

"Me too," said Casey with a sigh. "These past few hours have just been so hard. I keep thinking about how alone I feel in the world without Cappie. It's made me come to the realization that I don't really know what I have until it's gone."

"Now don't talk like that," said Rusty. "Cappie is not gone. He's still hanging on."

"I know," Casey replied. "It's just that up until now Cappie has really been my rock and support through everything. I almost feel like I don't know how to be strong without him."

"That's not true you know," said Rusty. "You are a very strong woman."

"How so?" Casey asked.

"Well, remember when grandpa died when you were like twelve and I was ten?" Rusty asked.

Casey nodded her head.

"You were the one hugging me and mom and telling us that everything was going to be OK," Rusty continued. "I remember wondering how I was crying so much but I never saw you cry."

"That is the key Russ," said Casey. "You never saw me cry because I did all my crying at night before I want to sleep when I was by myself. I wasn't as strong as you thought."

"OK, what about the time I was in the hospital?" Rusty asked.

"Russ, you have never been in the hospital unless you are talking about the time you broke your wrist when you were like seven and even then you were only there for like three hours," said Casey with a smirk.

"OK, bad example," Rusty replied. He sat and thought for another minute. "How about the time ZBZ almost lost their charter? You stood up to nationals and saved the chapter. Or how about when you stood up for Rebecca during that whole spring break video scandal? You weren't afraid to stand up for something you believed in either of those situations."

"OK, so the only time I've been able to be strong is with sorority conflicts? That really says a lot about me."

"You're not helping me here Case," said Rusty.

"I'm sorry Russ," said Casey. "I know you're trying to help but I've sat here for the past hour thinking about all the times I've been strong lately and they all fall back on Cappie. Everything from my decision to go to Washington DC for that summer internship to keeping myself together while giving birth to Cadence has been all about him."

"Well not when you first found out about Cadence," Rusty reminded her. "You went the first seven or eight weeks without telling Cappie."

"Yeah, and I was a wreck," said Casey. "It wasn't until I told Cappie when things started to fall into place."

"But you still started things," argued Rusty. "You went to your first doctor's appointment without him and I think you held yourself together pretty well those first seven weeks even if you don't think you did."

"I guess you're right," said Casey. "But that is such a small thing compared to everything else."

"It's the small things that can add up," said Rusty staring at Casey and taking her hand with his. "You're failing to see the big picture Casey. That strong person is in there. Sure, maybe the past few years you haven't had to be as strong as you're capable of because Cappie has been there for you. But that doesn't mean that your strength is gone. And you need to find that strength now more than ever not only for yourself but for Cappie."

"So you still think I'm strong enough to get through this?" Casey asked looking up at Rusty, sad tears now streaming down her face.

"Case, there is no doubt in my mind that you will overcome this and will probably come out an even stronger person in the end because of it," said Rusty squeezing her hand.

"Thanks Russ," said Casey with a small smile. "What you just said really touched my heart and if you have so much faith in me then maybe I need to have some more faith in myself."

"Exactly," said Rusty standing up and reaching his arms out towards Casey.

Casey stood up also and the two wrapped their arms around each other for a tight embrace.

"I love you so much Rusty," said Casey.

"I love you too sis," said Rusty squeezing her a little harder.

Rusty wiped a few tears off of Casey's face as the two of them backed away from each other.

"I'm going to head back upstairs to see Cappie," said Rusty. "Are you coming with me?"

"I don't think so," Casey replied. "I just can't sit in that waiting room for too long without going crazy watching all the crying people and doctors and nurses run in and out with good and bad news. I think I'll stay down here but you know where to find me if I'm needed OK?"

"You will come up eventually though, right?" Rusty asked as he made his way towards the door of the conference room.

"Of course," Casey replied. "And Russ?"

Rusty turned around just as he was opening the door.

"Say hi to Cappie for me," said Casey wiping her face with a tissue. "And tell him that I love him."

"Consider it done," Rusty replied as he walked out and shut the door behind him.

Casey sat and thought about the conversation she just had with Rusty for a few minutes. Seeing Rusty and talking to him was just what she needed. Times like this make her feel guilty for not having much of a relationship with Rusty until he started college. But there was no time to dwell on the past at the moment.

She pulled out her cell phone and called her mom. Throughout everything Cadence has always been in the back of her mind but she was long overdue with checking in with her.

"Hello," Mrs. Cartwright answered the phone.

"Hey mom," Casey stated in a soft voice.

"Oh Casey I've been waiting to hear from one of you soon," said her mom. "Did Rusty make it there?"

"Yeah, I just got done talking with him," Casey replied. "I figured I would call and catch you up on everything. I'm not sure how much dad has told you already."

"The last thing I knew is that Cappie was in surgery," Mrs. Cartwright stated.

"Well he made it out of surgery for his back OK," Casey said taking a deep breath. "But then he developed a really rapid heart rate and the doctors had to shock his heart to get it back into a normal rhythm which was kind of scary. And currently they just told me that he has the beginnings of an infection and now I'm not allowed to see him."

"What did you do?" Mrs. Cartwright asked in a motherly voice.

"I didn't do anything," said Casey rolling her eyes, even though it probably wouldn't surprise her mom if she did get kicked out of Cappie's room for being too emotional or something. "The doctor doesn't want me around him because of the infection he has. He doesn't want to put the baby at risk."

"Well it is best to be safe than sorry," Mrs. Cartwright stated. "How are you holding up?"

"Not well," Casey sighed. "It's hard not being able to see him but I was able to see him when he came out of surgery and it was just as hard. He's just so lifeless laying there with a tube down his throat and machines beeping all over the place. And it hurts because there is nothing that I can do about it."

"I know sweetheart," said Mrs. Cartwright. "But I know that Cappie would want you to continue to take care of yourself and the baby so that is certainly something you can do for him."

"Yeah, you have a point mom," said Casey. She then paused briefly. "So how is Cadence?"

"Well I have certainly been challenged today keeping her as busy as I can," Mrs. Cartwright replied. "She's asked where you and Cappie have been several times and I just keep telling her that you had to help Cappie at work early this morning and that is why you guys have been away."

"She is going to take this really hard mom," said Casey. "I don't even know where to start to begin to tell her what is going on."

"Cadence is a smart girl," said Mrs. Cartwright. "She took things pretty well when you were in the hospital."

"Yeah but you haven't seen Cappie mom," Casey replied. "His arms are all bandaged up covering the burns and he's probably going to be on the breathing tube for a while. I'm not sure if Cadence is going to be able to see him that way."

"I understand," Mrs. Cartwright replied. "But at the same time I can't keep telling her that you and Cappie are going to be working. As I said, she's a smart girl. She'll figure something is going on pretty soon."

"Yeah, that's true," said Casey. "Maybe since I can't see him right now it'll be better if I come to your house and stay the night with Cadence. I think telling her everything face-to-face will be better than over the phone."

"I think that's a good idea," Mrs. Cartwright stated. "But are you sure you're going to be able to leave Cappie?"

"No, I probably won't be able to emotionally," said Casey. "But as you said, it's something that I have to do for myself and my family to continue to keep us well while Cappie is not."

"I can even have dinner ready and on the table for when you guys get here," said Mrs. Cartwright.

"That would be nice mom, but I have no idea when we'll be home," Casey replied.

"Well it will still be here for when you get here then, regardless of what time it is."

"Is Cadence up from her nap? I would love to talk to her," said Casey.

"Yes, she's in the other room watching a movie," said Mrs. Cartwright. "But are you sure you want to talk to her Case?"

"Yeah, she might be in bed by the time I get home tonight," Casey replied. "I just want her to hear my voice and let her know that everything is alright."

"OK, hold on," Mrs. Cartwright paused. "Cadence, I have someone on the phone who wants to talk to you."

"Helwo," said Cadence into the phone.

"Hi sweetheart, it's mommy," said Casey.

"Mommy!" Cadence exclaimed. "Where are you?"

"I'm helping daddy," Casey replied. "Have you been having fun with grandma?"

"Yeah," Cadence replied. "We play with dolls."

"That sounds like fun," said Casey.

"Mommy, I miss you," said Cadence in a sad voice.

"I miss you too," said Casey trying her best to hold back tears. "But I will be there later tonight to see you but you might be sleeping by the time I get there."

"Daddy too?" Cadence asked in a more excited voice.

"Um, no, probably not," said Casey as she let a few tears escape her eyes. "But I'll make sure that he knows you miss him too."

"Can I talk to daddy?" Cadence asked.

Casey had to pause for a second. She bit her lip and closed her eyes tightly to try and keep the tears from flowing out of her eyes more. Cadence just had such an innocent and loving tone of voice in her last question and it really got to Casey.

"No," Casey sniffled. "Daddy can't come to the phone right now."

"Mommy, you crying?" Cadence asked.

"Mommy is just a little sad," said Casey trying her hardest not to lie to her daughter but still avoid the subject.

"Don't cry mommy," said Cadence. "I wuv you."

"I love you too sweetheart," Casey replied with another sniffle, failing miserably at this point in time to hide her crying. "Will you give the phone back to grandma?"

"OK, bye mommy," said Cadence.

"Casey?" Mrs. Cartwright came on the phone.

"Yeah, that probably wasn't a very good idea," said Casey wiping her eyes with a tissue.

"I warned you," said Mrs. Cartwright.

"I know," Casey replied. "I just needed to hear her voice." Casey paused. "Well one of us will give you a call when we are on our way home tonight," she continued. "So you know when to expect us."

"Sounds good," Mrs. Cartwright replied. "Stay strong Case, you're doing great."

"Thanks mom," Casey replied with a small smile. "I'll see you later."

"Bye."

Casey hung up the phone and immediately buried her head in her hands. She couldn't believe how hard it was just to talk to Cadence on the phone. It was hard to imagine how she was going to actually tell Cadence that her dad is very seriously hurt.

* * *

Casey woke up the next morning in the bed she grew up in. The last time she slept there was when she and Cappie came to tell her parents she was pregnant. She looked around the room at all the pink décor and was somewhat shocked as she realized how much she had grown up. The little things in the room used to mean everything to her. Now everything just sits in the room, only touched when her mom comes by occasionally with the dust rag. She should probably clean it out eventually so her parents can have a better guest room. But as long as they weren't pushing her she wasn't going to make an effort to change it.

Rusty and Mr. Cartwright took turns for the rest of the evening yesterday spending time in Cappie's room. There was no change in Cappie's condition. His heart rate remained stable and the nurse's said his burns were looking a lot cleaner each time they changed the bandages. There were a few times the nurses allowed Casey to stand in front of Cappie's door and look in on him. It wasn't the same as holding his hand and letting him know she was there but it was better than nothing. She made sure both Rusty and her dad told Cappie that she loved him and that she wished she could be in the room with him. No one could tell them if Cappie was able to hear and understand or not but they kept hope and talked to him as much as they could while they visited.

True to her word, Mrs. Cartwright had spaghetti prepared for dinner when the three of them got home. Casey really wasn't in the mood to eat but she forced down as much as she could knowing that she had to eat something.

Cadence was already in bed and asleep when they arrived home. After dinner Casey quietly walked in Cadence's room. She stood at her portable crib and watched her sleep for several minutes. She smiled slightly thinking of how much of Cappie she saw in Cadence. Cadence's hair was now past her shoulders. It was the same brown color as Cappie's with several natural curls at the ends. Her hair was a mess all over her face and pillow much like Cappie's was every night he slept. But somehow they both manage to wake up every morning with it falling right into place and only having to run a brush through it. Casey was very envious of this as she usually spent a while in the mirror with several hair products to get her hair as perfect as theirs is. Cadence even slept like Cappie; on her right side tightly clenching her favorite teddy bear which in Cappie's case, Casey was usually the teddy bear. She smiled thinking about how she loved cuddling with Cappie in bed every night.

As quietly as she could Casey leaned down and kissed Cadence before returning to her room to sleep for the night. Surprisingly she slept well. It was probably the emotional exhaustion that finally got to her and caused her to fall asleep. She did wake up several times during the night to check her cell phone on the nightstand next to the bed, just in case the nurses called her about Cappie.

She looked at it again this morning to see she had no missed calls. She took that as 'no news is good news' and slowly climbed out of bed. The walk to Cadence's room felt like it was a lot longer than it would normally be. As much as she wanted to see her daughter she knew the upcoming conversation that would have to go along with seeing her and it was that part that she was dreading.

Casey opened the door to find Cadence standing up in her crib.

"Mommy!" she said happily.

"Good morning," said Casey as she went over and picked Cadence up out of her crib. "Did you sleep good?"

"Yup," Cadence replied as she wrapped her arms around Casey's neck and gave her a hug.

Casey took her over to a recliner chair in the corner of the room and sat Cadence in her lap.

"I hungry," said Cadence.

"We can get breakfast in a little bit," Casey replied. "I want to talk to you about something first though."

Cadence sat facing Casey staring at her with her big blue eyes. They were Cappie's eyes and it took everything Casey had to fight back the tears before the conversation even started.

"Cadence I have some sad news about daddy," Casey started.

"Why?" Cadence asked, her face becoming very somber.

Casey took a deep breath. She suddenly wished she had planned out this conversation a little better.

"Sweetheart, do you remember a little while ago when you fell off the slide at the park and you got a boo boo on your arm?" Casey asked.

"Yeah, ouchie!" said Cadence as she pointed to where the scrape was.

"Well daddy had an accident and he has lots of boo boos right now," said Casey looking right into Cadence's eyes, watching to see if she was understanding what she was trying to say.

"Daddy have boo boo?" Cadence asked.

"Yes, but daddy's boo boos are very bad," said Casey. "They are so bad that he is in the hospital right now so the doctors can take care of him."

"Can I kiss boo boos?" Cadence asked, never taking her eyes off of her mother.

"No sweetheart," said Casey as she lightly ran her hand through Cadence's hair. "Daddy's boo boos have made him very sick and only special people are allowed to see him."

"I special," said Cadence.

"Yes, yes you are," Casey replied. "But daddy needs to get better before you can see him."

"But I daddy's special girl," Cadence reiterated again, the tears now forming in her eyes.

Seeing her blue eyes fill with tears was the most heartbreaking thing Casey has ever seen. At this point she was on the edge of tears herself.

"I see daddy tomowwow?" Cadence asked when Casey didn't respond to her previous statement.

Casey shook her head no as she bit her bottom lip, trying her hardest not to cry uncontrollably.

"Next day?" Cadence asked becoming more frantic and worried she was never going to see her daddy again.

"I—I—don't know baby," said Casey becoming noticeably choked up. "Daddy is very sick."

"I wanna see daddy," said Cadence.

And then it happened. A single tear fell down from each of her blue eyes. Casey stared at the streaks they caused as they ran over her round cheeks and fell off by her chin. Casey then wrapped her arms around Cadence tightly as Cadence leaned into her shoulder. Soon Cadence began to cry harder.

"I want to see daddy too," said Casey as she rubbed her hand up and down Cadence's back.

"Dad-dy," said Cadence through her sobs causing a large wet spot on Casey's, well actually Cappie's, t-shirt.

Once Cadence had calmed down a little Casey leaned her back to sit back on her lap. Her cheeks were now completely wet, like a dam broke loose and all the water came flooding out. Her eyes were still blue as ever but they were now bloodshot from crying. Casey reached up with her hands and wiped the tears off of Cadence's face.

"As daddy's special girls you and I have to work to be strong," said Casey now wiping the tears off her own eyes. "We need to send lots of good thoughts to daddy so he can get better real soon."

"And then I see him?" Cadence asked.

"I promise," said Casey moving a piece of Cadence's hair behind her ear. "As soon as daddy is better I will take you to see him. But until then I need you to stay here with grandma and grandpa and be strong for daddy."

"You too?" Cadence asked.

"No, I have to be at the hospital to answer any of the questions the doctors may have about daddy," Casey replied. "That's why you'll stay here with grandma and grandpa."

"But I'll miss you," said Cadence becoming choked up again.

"I'm going to miss you too honey," said Casey taking Cadence's hands into hers. "But can I count on you to be strong and help me be strong?"

Cadence just nodded her head as she mimicked what Casey had done earlier by biting her bottom lip. She was trying with everything she had to be strong and not cry. But it was a hard thing for such a little girl to do.

"Mommy—I sad," Cadence managed to say before bursting into tears and burying her head in Casey's shoulder again. It was a strange feeling for Cadence. She had been sad before because she had fallen and scraped her leg or sad because mommy would put her to bed without a bedtime story when she was a bad girl. But she had never felt this kind of sad. Her dad was so special to her and the thought of him hurt was a lot for her to take.

All Casey could do was wrap her arms tightly around Cadence and rock the chair she was in back and forth to try and calm her down.

"Shhhhh," she whispered softly into Cadence's ear. "Everything is going to be alright sweetheart. Everything is going to be….alright."

* * *

_**A/N: OK, I know some of you are waiting for Cappie to come back into action but I just LOVED the way this chapter turned out. There's always a special place in my heart for Casey and Rusty interaction and I even shed a few tears writing Cadence's reaction at the end :0( Poor girl.....**_

_**I unfortunately have to go out of town this weekend so the next chapter might not be up until next week sometime depending on if I find time to write or not just to let you know.**_


	127. Beneath the Surface

BENEATH THE SURFACE

Over the next four days Casey did whatever she could to spend time between Cappie at the hospital and Cadence at her parent's house. She was now allowed into the room to see Cappie but each day he was sedated and on the breathing tube became harder and harder for her. She talked to him about anything that came to her mind from the weather outside to what Cadence was having for lunch. But the constant beeping of the machines in Cappie's room was the closest thing to a reply she would get when she talked, and her heart ached with each beep that passed.

Cadence asked daily if she could go and see Cappie. Casey felt it would be best to wait until Cappie was off the breathing tube before she took her to see him. Seeing Cappie the way he was would be something traumatic for Cadence to see and she didn't want to put her though that. To make up for it, Casey spent as much time with Cadence as she could when she came back to her parent's house. She even made it a point every night to read Cadence a story and rock her to sleep, hoping to ease her fears and make her as comfortable as possible.

"Mommy," said Cadence after Casey finished reading her a bedtime story. "Can I see daddy?"

"Not yet sweetheart," said Casey stroking her hair. "Hopefully really soon though."

"How soon?" Cadence asked.

"I don't know," Casey replied.

"Daddy would feel better if I see him," said Cadence, staring directly in Casey's eyes.

Casey wasn't sure how to reply to that remark. For all she knew Cadence could be right, especially if Cappie was able to hear them talk to him. Hearing Cadence may actually make him feel better. Casey took a deep breath as she looked back into Cadence's eyes. They were so innocent. All she really wanted was to see her daddy and Casey knew it had to happen eventually.

"OK," said Casey with a sigh. "I'll take you with me to see daddy tomorrow. But I'm going to warn you, daddy doesn't look like himself."

"Why?" Cadence asked.

"Well the fire caused some boo boos on his arms," Casey replied. "And all the smoke made daddy's lungs bad so he has a machine that helps him breathe."

Cadence didn't respond. She wasn't sure what to say.

"It's OK," said Casey wrapping her arms around Cadence and giving her a hug. "I'm sure daddy will be happy to see you. He loves you."

"OK," Cadence replied with her head buried in Casey's shoulder.

The two of them sat like that for several minutes. Casey rocked the chair back and forth until she heard the rhythmic breathing coming from Cadence which usually meant she had fallen asleep. She got up and lowered Cadence slowly into the portable crib.

"I love you," Casey whispered as she leaned down and gave Cadence a kiss on the cheek.

She stood there for a couple more seconds and then slowly walked out of the room and shut the door. Once in the hall she leaned against the door and sighed. Bringing Cadence to see Cappie was going to be hard but it has been close to a week since Cadence has seen him.

"_Cappie would be OK with this right?"_ she thought as she leaned her head back against the door.

And all of a sudden the feeling of being a single parent hit her liked a ton of bricks. It was her job to call the shots now and decide what is right and wrong for Cadence. Usually she and Cappie would discuss things together about Cadence. Just the other week Cappie approached her about getting Cadence a 'big girl' bed for her birthday. The crib was becoming too small for her and he felt like she would be ready for a regular bed. They discussed the pros and cons about everything and agreed that it was time for her to get her own bed. She missed times like this already. Making all the decisions alone put a lot of pressure of her and she could only hope Cappie would wake up soon so they could go back to living like a normal parental unit.

Casey's thoughts were interrupted when her phone rang. She took it out of her pocket to see that it was Ashleigh. The two of them haven't spoken much since the fire and she knew a conversation was well overdue.

"Hey Ash," she said answering the phone.

"Hey Case, how are you?" said Ashleigh.

"Oh, hanging in there I guess," Casey replied. "How about you? How is Beaver doing?"

"The doctors are letting him come home from the hospital tomorrow," said Ashleigh. "He's still on some breathing medications but overall he's doing better."

"That's great Ash," said Casey in a happy tone, as hard as it was to actually be happy for her best friend.

"How's Cappie?" Ashleigh asked.

"No change," Casey replied. "I guess we're just taking it day by day now."

"I can't believe he's still on the ventilator," Ashleigh stated sadly. "How about the infection? How is that doing?"

"The nurse today said the infection should be about gone," Casey replied. "They were going to take his blood after I left today again to see if the infection was still there or not."

"That's good," said Ashleigh. "I talked to one of the nurses here and she told me that having the infection could be really serious so I was sending good thoughts Cap's way."

"Thanks Ash," said Casey. "We really need them at this point."

There was a brief silence between the two of them.

"Have you talked to Rebecca or Evan?" Ashleigh finally asked.

"Yeah, I talked to them yesterday," Casey replied. "They were going to drop everything and call off work to come here. But I told them there wasn't a whole lot going on at this point so they are going to come this weekend instead."

"That's nice," Ashleigh replied. "It will be good to see Rebecca."

There was another brief pause.

"Beaver wants me to drive him down to see Cappie after he's discharged tomorrow," Ashleigh said breaking the silence. "Do you think that will be OK?"

"I don't see why not," Casey replied. "But there really isn't much to do down here with Cappie on the breathing tube. As much as I hate saying this, talking to him is like talking to a brick wall."

Ashleigh let out a little laugh. "Well that's certainly a change from the normal Cappie we do know."

"Isn't that the truth," said Casey also with a small laugh.

"I miss you Case," said Ashleigh after another brief silence.

"I miss you too Ash," Casey replied. "I wish they didn't have to send Cappie to another hospital that way we could have been there for each other."

"I'm still here for you Case," said Ashleigh. "I know this is probably hard for you having Beaver doing so well and Cappie not doing do well."

"Yeah," Casey sighed. "I was kind of bitter at first. But now I just want the two of you here and I know Cappie would like the same."

"Well we will be there sometime tomorrow," said Ashleigh. "They are discharging Beaver in the morning and we'll leave right after that."

"That sounds good," Casey replied. "He's in the burn unit, room 425."

"Room 425…." Ashleigh muttered as she wrote the room number down on a piece of paper. "Got it."

"Well I think I'm going to head to bed," said Casey. "It's going to be another long day tomorrow."

"Keep your spirits up Case," said Ashleigh. "I know Cappie is going to pull through this."

"I will Ash," Casey replied. "I love you and I'll see you tomorrow."

"Love you too," said Ashleigh as she made a kissing noise in the phone. "Bye!"

"Bye," Casey said as she hung up the phone.

She put it back in her pocket and made her way to her room. She changed into her pajamas and climbed into bed. Deep down she missed Ashleigh and Beaver a lot and it will be nice having them there with it being Cadence's first visit. Maybe tomorrow would be better than she thought.

* * *

The next day Casey slept in longer than she had intended to. She had a difficult time falling asleep the night before thinking about all the reactions Cadence would have when she saw Cappie. She had to remind herself several times that what she was doing was in the best interest for Cadence and Cappie. And hopefully seeing Cappie will help Cadence come to terms more with what was happening.

After a late breakfast Casey, Cadence and Mrs. Cartwright all got into the car and drove down to UCMC.

"Can I kiss daddy?" Cadence asked as Casey lifted her out of the car seat once they arrived at the hospital.

"Mommy will get you close enough so you can give daddy a kiss," Casey replied. "But you have to be really gentle because you don't want to hurt daddy."

"No, I never hurt daddy," said Cadence with a concerned face.

"I know you wouldn't sweetheart," Casey replied.

Casey grabbed Cadence's hand and they followed Mrs. Cartwright up to the hospital door. Cadence stopped right before walking through the automatic sliding doors.

"Mommy?" she said softly.

"What's wrong honey?" Casey asked bending down to Cadence's level.

"Can I be scared?" Cadence asked, tears beginning to form in her eyes.

Just then Casey began to regret this decision. Maybe Cadence really wasn't ready for this?

"It's perfectly OK to be scared," Casey replied grabbing Cadence's hand and squeezing it. "Mommy is scared too."

Cadence looked down at the ground as a tear fell down her cheek.

"It's OK if you're too scared to see daddy," said Casey lifting Cadence's chin to look at her. "You can stay in the waiting room. I brought lots of coloring books and games for you to play with."

Cadence shook her head no quickly.

"What was that for?" Casey asked.

"I can do this," said Cadence reaching up and wiping the tear off her cheek.

Casey smiled at her daughter. It was cute to see her trying to be so brave but Casey knew deep down she was probably the most scared she had been in her entire life.

"Yes, you're a big girl," Casey replied. "Are you ready to go in?"

Cadence shook her head yes as Casey stood back up and walked with Cadence into the hospital. Casey shot her mom a worried look once they got into the elevator.

"She'll be fine," Mrs. Cartwright replied reading her daughter's expression.

"I hope so," said Casey softly as they reached the fourth floor.

Casey took a deep breath as they exited the elevator. And then she hesitated.

"You know what," she said. "Why don't I go talk to the nurse and make sure there is nothing new with Cappie before we go in?"

"Sounds reasonable enough," Mrs. Cartwright replied. "Come on Cadence, let's go to the waiting room for a little bit."

Mrs. Cartwright took Cadence's hand and the two of them walked towards the waiting room.

"Bye mommy," said Cadence as she turned around and waved to Casey.

"I'll be back to get you soon," Casey said as she waved back to Cadence.

Casey watched as the two of them entered the waiting room and then turned around and headed to the nurses' station herself. Mandy was Cappie's regular nurse during the day. The two of them had become close with all the hours during the day Casey had been spending with Cappie. She searched the nurses' station but didn't see Mandy there. She then glanced in Cappie's room and saw that Mandy was jotting some notes in a chart by the door of Cappie's room.

"Good morning," said Casey walking up to her.

"Looks to me it's almost good afternoon," said Mandy glancing at her watch.

"Yeah, I slept in a little later today," said Casey somewhat embarrassed.

"Don't worry about it," said Mandy. "You've put in a lot of hours here lately. It's understandable that you needed a good night's sleep."

"Did you get the infection reports from last night?" Casey asked.

"Yeah," Mandy replied.

"And?" Casey asked nervously.

"There is still a very slight trace of infection," Mandy replied. "But the doctor said with another couple of days of the antibiotics it should go away."

"That's great," Casey replied. "I was really nervous about that."

"I know," Mandy replied.

"So how did he do last night?" Casey asked.

Mandy smiled and Casey found her reaction somewhat strange and gave her a confused look.

"How about you stop asking her all the questions and come talk to me?" said a faint voice on the other side of the room.

Casey's face instantly lit up and a large smile grew on her face. Mandy stepped aside so Casey could walk, well run, into the room.

"Oh my god," she said stopping at Cappie's bed, tears of joy now forming in her eyes.

She wanted so badly to reach down and hug him but she didn't want to hurt him. But Cappie reached his arms towards her and all fears of hurting him flew out of her head. All she wanted to do was hug him and feel his arms around her again.

"I have never been more scared and worried about you," she said through her tears as she cried on his shoulder.

"It's OK," said Cappie rubbing his hand up and down her back. "I'm here now."

"Yes, yes you are," said Casey squeezing him even tighter.

The entire moment for Casey was almost overwhelming. It was like as soon as she heard Cappie speak all the thoughts of sadness and anger she felt over the past week lifted off of her shoulders. She felt whole again and welcomed that feeling more than ever.

"When did you get the breathing tube out?" Casey asked as she backed away. "And how come no one called me?"

"He pulled it out," Mandy stated as she walked over to the bed.

Casey looked at Cappie with a shocked expression.

"I don't really remember it," he replied shrugging his shoulders.

"The night nurse told me he began to wake up from the sedation medicine for some reason," Mandy explained. "And patient's are not usually in their right mind when they come out of it. So in that moment I guess he decided he was tired of the breathing tube and pulled it out."

"Only you Cap," said Casey with a laugh. "But how come no one called me?"

"I wouldn't let them," Cappie replied. "It was around three in the morning once I completely woke up and was able to figure out where I was and there was no reason you had to wake up and run here to the hospital at that hour. I knew I would still be here in the morning when you got here."

"It figures the one day I'm late you are awake," said Casey rolling her eyes.

"It's really not a big deal," said Cappie pulling her down to sit on the edge of his bed. "I know you were here a lot."

"I'll let you two talk," said Mandy excusing herself and walking out of the room.

"How did you know I was here a lot?" Casey asked. "Could you hear me talking to you?"

"Noooo," said Cappie as he shook his head yes, much like he did to Casey junior year in the pool hall.

"Oh man," said Casey, embarrassed of all the random stuff she said to him while he was on the breathing tube.

"Actually there were times I was able to hear you and times I wasn't," said Cappie. "I think it depended on how much of the sedation medicine they had in me."

"But still," said Casey, her cheeks still blushing. "I said some really weird things to you."

"I especially liked your daily education of Cadence's lunch, right down to the oatmeal raisin cookie she had for dessert," said Cappie with a laugh.

"Well it's hard talking to someone who doesn't reply," said Casey with a laugh. "I was trying to come up with anything and everything I could to talk to you about."

The two of them locked eyes as they stopped laughing.

"Thanks for being there Case," said Cappie as he reached up and stroked the side of her cheek. "I know it was hard but it really meant the entire world to me. Hearing your voice every day made me fight even harder."

"You know I'm always here for you," Casey replied.

"I'd kiss you right now but my lips are chapped and my breath probably smells like—"

But Casey didn't care. She leaned towards Cappie and placed her lips firmly on top of his, savoring the moment and taking in his familiar smell she missed so much.

"Guess you don't mind my chapped lips and nasty breath," said Cappie backing away from her.

"It really doesn't matter because I've seriously missed you more than you'll ever know," Casey replied as more tears ran down her face.

"Hey, no crying," said Cappie reaching up and wiping them off.

"Sorry," Casey replied. "I guess it's a combination of joy and relief. There were several times that we didn't think you were going to make it Cap. Has anyone told you everything that happened?"

"No," Cappie replied. "But honestly I don't care at the moment. I can relive all that later. Right now I just want to spend time with my family."

Casey smiled as she leaned in and gave him a quick kiss.

"And speaking of family," said Cappie reaching to rub Casey's stomach. "How are the baby and my favorite little girl?"

"The baby is doing just fine," Casey replied. "And Cadence is actually in the waiting room. I brought her here to see you today because she's really missed you. I had no idea you would be off the breathing tube and able to talk to her."

"I can't wait to see her," said Cappie softly.

"I can go get her if you want," said Casey beginning to stand up.

"Wait a little bit," said Cappie grabbing her hand and pulling her back down to sit on the bed. "I want to concentrate on you for a moment. Have you checked your blood pressure recently?"

"Cap, seriously?" Casey asked, a little annoyed that Cappie was already checking up on her when he's the one who is still sick.

"You know I'm just concerned about you," Cappie replied as he hit his nurse's button. "I want to make sure everything is OK."

"What are you doing?" Casey asked noticing Cappie had hit the nurse's button.

"How can I help you?" Mandy asked over the loud speaker.

"Mandy dear, can you please bring a blood pressure monitor in here?" Cappie asked.

"Cap!" Casey whined.

"I just want to make sure everything is OK," he said giving her a serious look. "With all the stress with my injuries I'm worried your blood pressure may be too high."

Seconds later Mandy came in the room with the blood pressure monitor. She began to put it on Cappie's arm.

"No," he said moving his arm away. "Take hers please."

Mandy gave Cappie a confused look but put the cuff of Casey anyway. They all sat there for several seconds watching the machine pump up and waiting for the result.

"One thirty two over eighty two," Mandy said once the machine beeped that it was done.

"That's high Case," said Cappie a little worried.

"It's not that high," said Casey. "And you even said it yourself, it's no wonder it's a little elevated with everything that has been going on. I'll check it again later once I've been able to calm down a little bit."

"OK," said Cappie reluctantly. "I'm still worried about you though."

"You need to worry more about yourself," said Casey. "I'm fine now that you are awake and talking to me. I'm sure it will go down as you keep getting better."

Cappie just shook his head, hoping that Casey was right in what she said. "I would love to see Cadence now."

"I'll go get her," said Casey standing up and walking out of the room.

She smiled on her way to the waiting room. As much as she was annoyed Cappie was more concerned about her than himself, she was happy that she had her Cappie back. It was like he never skipped a beat, going right back to the things they were dealing with before the fire and everything happened.

Cadence stood immediately as she saw Casey walk into the room.

"Ready mommy?" she asked.

"I am more than ready," said Casey continuing to smile as she picked Cadence up in her arms. "And I have some good news."

"What?" Cadence and Mrs. Cartwright asked in unison.

"Cappie is no longer on the breathing tube," she replied. "We can talk to him."

"Yay!" exclaimed Cadence as she clapped her hands. "Let's go!"

"You heard the girl," said Mrs. Cartwright with a laugh. "Get her in there to see her daddy."

"Yes mam," said Casey as she walked towards the door still carrying Cadence. "Mom, are you coming?" Casey asked as she turned around and noticed her mom wasn't following them.

"No, I'm going to stay here and go in a little bit later," Mrs. Cartwright replied. "You guys need a little family time right now."

"OK, I'll come get you later," Casey replied as she turned and walked out the waiting room door.

Casey stopped for a second before they got to Cappie's room.

"Now daddy is still pretty sick," said Casey warning Cadence. "But he's really excited to see you."

"Let's go mommy," said Cadence who was becoming impatient.

"OK," said Casey as she walked into Cappie's room.

"Daddy!" exclaimed Cadence as soon as she saw Cappie.

"Hey!" said Cappie as Casey set Cadence down on the edge of the bed. "How is my special girl?"

"Good," Cadence replied with a nod of her head. She stayed exactly where Casey had set her, afraid to even move a muscle.

"Are you going to give me a hug?" Cappie asked sensing Cadence's nervousness. She was just like her mom in so many ways.

With his permission, Cadence stood up and wrapped her arms around Cappie's neck. Cappie felt a little pain as she rubbed against one of the burns on his arm but he didn't care. He would take any pain to have his daughter close to him again.

"Daddy I missed you," said Cadence as she backed away.

"I missed you too," Cappie replied. "But I thought of you all of the time."

"Me too," Cadence replied. "And I was sad."

"Well there is no reason to be sad anymore," said Cappie as he motioned for Cadence to sit back down on the bed. "Daddy is better now."

"You come home tomowwow?" Cadence asked.

Cappie smiled. "Not tomorrow," he said. "But hopefully soon."

Cadence then reached up and gently touched the bandages on Cappie's arms.

"Boo boos?" she asked.

"Yes, those are daddy's boo boos," Cappie replied.

"Cadence don't touch those," said Casey from a chair next to Cappie's bed.

"She's fine," Cappie replied.

"Well who is this pretty little girl?" Mandy asked as she walked in the room.

"This is my daughter Cadence," said Cappie. "Say hi Cadence."

"Hi!" said Cadence as she waved to Mandy.

"She is so adorable," said Mandy with a smile. "I just have a few pills for you to take."

"What are these?" Cappie asked as he looked in the cup Mandy handed him.

"There are a couple of pain meds, one for your heart and an antibiotic for the infection," Mandy replied.

"Heart pill?" Cappie asked. "Something wrong with my heart?"

"You're heart rate was out of control after your back surgery," Casey stated. "They had to shock your heart to get it back to normal. The pills are probably to keep it normal."

"Wait, they had to shock me like you see on the TV where the patient's whole body like jumps in the air?" Cappie asked.

"Yes," Mandy replied smiling at Cappie's description of how a defibrillator works. "You didn't jump too high though."

"That's awesome," said Cappie as he put the pills in his mouth and swallowed them with a drink of water.

"That is NOT awesome," Casey said. "You could have died."

"I'll be back later," said Mandy excusing herself and shutting the door behind her.

"Case, relax, everything is OK," said Cappie.

"No, everything isn't OK," Casey replied as she stood up and began to pace. "You're sitting here acting like nothing has happened over the past week. It's not cool that they had to shock your heart and you're still not one hundred percent. You're probably going to need some rehab for your back and your burns still need to heal and you still need to get rid of the infection. I just can't believe you're being so calm about all this."

"Why should I stress out about things?" Cappie asked defensively. "If it was my time to go then the man upstairs would have taken me several days ago."

"Don't talk like that in front of Cadence," said Casey glaring at Cappie.

Cappie looked back at her with a surprised look on his face. Where was this sudden attitude change in her coming from?

"Something wrong?" Cappie asked. "You just don't seem yourself."

"I have been going through hell these past five days, that's why I'm not myself. Sorry," said Casey bitterly.

"Whoa, I understand that," Cappie stated. "I just feel like there are some things deeper that are bothering you."

There was an awkward silence between all of them as they stared at each other. Cappie could tell in Casey's body language that there was something bothering her but it obviously wasn't something she wanted to discuss in front of Cadence.

"No fighting!" said Cadence finally breaking the silence.

"You heard the girl," said Cappie. "Let's just be a happy family for right now."

Cappie rolled his bottom lip out and gave Casey a pouty look. Casey realized that there was no point in stirring up a long discussion with Cappie at the moment about all her feelings from the week from wondering how dependent she is on him to telling his parents what she really thought of them. That news was probably going to be the hardest to break to Cappie, given how he keeps holding onto hopes of a closer relationship to his parents.

"OK," said Casey as she took a deep breath and sat back down in the chair.

"Up here," said Cappie patting the side of the bed. "I want both of my girls next to me."

"Are you sure there is room?" Casey asked.

"Sure mommy," said Cadence as she moved over to make some room for Casey.

"Thanks," said Casey as she sat on the edge of the bed.

Cappie took one of each of their hands and squeezed them tightly.

"I love you two, well three," he said glancing at Casey's stomach. "more than anything in the entire world. I'm sorry I caused you to be sad and scared."

"There is no reason for you to be sorry Cap," said Casey. "What happened was an accident and you couldn't help it."

"I understand," said Cappie. "But I just wanted you guys to know how much I love and care about you. You two are the reason I'm still here today. I love you guys so much."

"Wuv you too daddy!" exclaimed Cadence.

Cappie brought Cadence's hand up to his mouth and kissed it gently.

"And I love you too daddy," said Casey with a smile.

"See now, that's all I want to see for the rest of the day; smiles," he said. "Everything else can wait. Right now I just want my wonderful family right next to me."

All three of them leaned in for a hug as there was a knock at the door.

"That must be Ash and Beave," said Casey as she backed away. "I hope you don't mind I told them they could come. Beaver just got discharged this morning and he's been really eager to see you."

"Not a problem at all," Cappie replied. "Let them in."

Casey stood up off the bed and walked over to the door. She swung it open expecting to find Ashleigh and Beaver standing on the other side. But her heart plummeted to the ground once she saw who it actually was.

"April, Tobias," she said nervously. "You made it."

* * *

_**A/N: Hey everyone! Sorry this chapter took a little longer for me to get written. Work has been pretty crazy and I'm working later at night than I usually do....BOO! Anyway, I wanted to say first thank you to those who reviewed the last chapter. They were some of the best reviews I've had for one chaper. It made me smile knowing the Rusty/Casey and Casey/Cadence scenes were touching. I'm sure a lot of you are happy that Cappie is back and OK now....hehe. Thanks again for reading and keep the awesome reviews coming.....you guys are the best!**_


	128. Respect Your Elders

RESPECT YOUR ELDERS

Casey stepped aside as April and Tobias walked into the room, pretty much ignoring her.

"Cappie! It's so good to see that you are OK!" said April as she gave him a hug.

"Thanks mom," said Cappie returning her hug.

"Oh and this must be my little phone buddy Cadence," said April looking at Cadence still sitting next to her dad on the bed.

Cadence wasn't really sure what to do. She had never seen these people before. She scooted closer to Cappie and wrapped her arm around his.

"It's OK Cadence," said Cappie turning to look at her. "This is your grandma and grandpa. Remember how you talk to grandma on the phone sometimes?"

Cadence shook her head yes but was still not interested in letting go of her dad.

"She's just a little shy I guess," said Cappie who found Cadence's actions somewhat confusing given how she's always been an outgoing little girl.

An awkward silence filled the room as no one was really sure what to say next. Cappie looked up to find Casey still standing close to the door.

"You going to come join us over here honey?" Cappie asked.

"Um, I, I, um, think I'm, um, going to get something to drink," she said opening the door. "I'll be back later."

Casey made her way out of the room as quickly as she could and slammed the door shut. She felt like she was slowly losing control of her own breathing while in the room. Thinking about what she said to Cappie's parents a few days ago and now having to see them face to face was something she was not prepared to deal with.

Before she walked off to the waiting room she held her ear close to the door to listen in and see if Cappie noticed her hasty exit. Of course he did.

"What's going on with Casey?" he asked.

"She's probably just stressed and decided to take a little break now that we are here," Tobias replied.

"Yeah, we told her we would get here as soon as we could when she called," added April. "She was probably looking forward to us coming so she could take a little break."

Casey heard enough. She backed away from the door and went storming down the hallway. How could Cappie's parents lie to him like that? They had no plans to come and see him when she talked to them a few days ago. She became even more furious just thinking about it as she stormed into the waiting room and plopped down in one of the chairs.

"My, my, you don't seem like you're too happy dear," someone said to Casey.

Casey turned to see an old woman sitting a couple of chairs down from her. She had short grey hair and several wrinkles on her face. She was holding her purse tightly in her lap and reminded Casey a lot like her grandmother who had passed away several years ago.

"I'm not," Casey replied. "I hate my husband's parents."

"Such harsh words my dear," the old lady responded. "I'm sure you don't mean it quite like that."

"Maybe," said Casey with a deep breath.

Casey watched as the lady stood up and sat in the chair next to her.

"The name is Eleanor," she said shaking Casey's hand. "But you can call me Granny if you want. That's what all my grandkids call me."

"Nice to meet you Ele—Granny," said Casey correcting herself. "My name is Casey."

"Well Casey, what brings you in here?" Eleanor asked.

"My husband was in a fire," Casey replied. "He's got some burns and a broken back but I think he should pull through OK. How about you?"

"I'm here because of my husband also," Eleanor replied. "He had been complaining of some chest pains the past couple of days and I told him he should go to the hospital. But he's such a stubborn old man. This morning he woke up and they had gotten much worse so they are monitoring him and doing tests to see if his heart is OK or not."

"I'm sorry to hear that," said Casey. "I hope he's OK."

"Me too," said Eleanor. She paused briefly. "But enough about me, you seem to be dealing with some other issues on top of everything else. Care to share?"

Casey looked Eleanor in her eyes. She wasn't sure if she should spill everything to her that was happening but there was just something about this old lady that made her feel comfortable.

"My husband's parents have never really been a huge part of his life," Casey began. "I got pregnant right before graduating college and they did not take the news well. It took them a while but they eventually came around and my husband and I really thought they were changing. But our child is now two years old and they haven't even seen her since she's been born. And when I told them about him being in the fire they talked about going on some sort of safari in Africa instead of coming to see him."

"You can't change people you know?" Eleanor stated. "I hope you're not trying to make them something they're not dear."

"No, that's not it," Casey replied. "I guess right now I'm more concerned with making my husband upset more than anything."

"And why is that?" Eleanor asked.

"Because I kind of told them just what I thought of them before hanging up the phone when I heard they were going to Africa instead of coming to visit their son," said Casey.

"Uh oh," said Eleanor giving Casey a concerned look.

"Yeah," Casey sighed. "I basically told them that they are horrible parents and that they only care about themselves and have never made my husband a priority in their lives."

"You sure did give them everything," said Eleanor with a small laugh trying to make Casey feel a little bit better.

"And it felt so good at the time," said Casey smiling back at Eleanor. "But just a little bit ago they actually showed up and now I can't even face them."

"Did you ever think that you saying that to them made them come here to see him?" Eleanor asked. "Maybe if you hadn't said what you did they would be off to Africa."

"Guilt tripping them into coming wasn't really what I had in mind though," said Casey.

"I'm sure," Eleanor replied. "But it worked didn't it? And I'm sure your husband is happy that they are here to see him."

"You have a point," said Casey. "But how am I going to deal with what I said to them if they all of a sudden decide to be parents of the year now? What if I have to see them more often now?"

"Let me tell you a story darling," said Eleanor as she placed her hand on Casey's knee. "I've been through a quite similar situation with my husband."

"Really?" Casey asked.

"Stan's parents didn't like me at all," Eleanor continued shaking her head. "And they probably still hate me to this day and are rolling in their graves knowing that Stan and I have been married for sixty-five years now."

"Wow, that's amazing," said Casey smiling at Eleanor.

"Thank you," said Eleanor. "But basically when I met Stan in high school he was your typical golden boy. He obeyed everything everyone told him and got some of the highest grades in school. Me, on the other hand, I was the wild child. I would wear clothes to school that were against the rules just to make a statement. I was loud and not afraid to tell anyone what I thought of them. And I guess you could say I was a little promiscuous too."

Eleanor let out a small laugh, as did Casey.

"Stan and I fell in love with each other very quickly," Eleanor continued. "I guess you could call it love at first sight. But of course his parents hated the fact that we were together. They thought I was a bad influence on him. They had plans for him to join the military to serve his country and then go to college and become a big business man. But when those plans didn't happen, they blamed me. Stan did go into the military but only because he was drafted. And I promised him that I would wait for him until he got back. Three days after he returned from Germany we got married and ten months later had our first daughter. Over the years I did everything I could to be the perfect mother and housewife to try and please his parents. But they still continued to resent me for changing Stan's life. We ended up buying a farm in southern Illinois and making a living off our crops. This of course was not the type of business they had hoped he would go into. I felt for years that I was fighting a losing battle. When we would get together on holidays they would say hello to me and no other words were exchanged the entire rest of the time. And you know what sweetheart? I was OK with that."

"You were?" Casey asked. "Didn't the tension drive you crazy?"

"It would have if it weren't for my husband," Eleanor replied. "In the end he's the only one that matters. I could have tried everything I could to make his parents happy but there was no pleasing them. I love Stan so much and I don't know what I would do without him. Being with him was worth every penny of his parent's negativity towards me because there is no stronger love than your first love."

"You are a really strong woman Granny," said Casey. "I admire you for making it through everything."

"Why thank you Casey," said Eleanor. "And to be honest, I see a lot of myself in those days in you. You are a strong woman and even though I haven't met your husband, I'm sure you two love each other very much."

"We do," said Casey nodding her head.

"So that is all that should matter then dear," said Eleanor. "If his parents are upset with you then let them be upset. You were only speaking your opinion. Your husband is not going to be upset at you for what you did. If he loves you just as much as Stan loves me I'm sure the two of you will be alright."

Casey reached her arms out to Eleanor and gave her a hug.

"Granny, you have been like my angel sent from above," said Casey. "When I walked in here I was furious and felt like punching a nice hard wall. But after talking with you I feel so much calmer about the situation."

"I'm glad I could help dear," said Eleanor backing away from the hug.

"I think I should probably go and talk with them now that I have the momentum," said Casey standing up.

"Oh my, I didn't notice you have a little one in the oven dear," said Eleanor reaching up and rubbing her hand on Casey's stomach. "When are you due?"

"Late February," said Casey. "I have a doctor's appointment next week where I'll probably know the exact due date."

"Well congratulations my dear," said Eleanor. "And if you're looking for any baby names I've heard that Eleanor is an excellent choice."

"I'll keep that in mind," said Casey with a smile. "I'll see you around Granny."

"Bye sweetheart," said Eleanor as Casey walked out of the waiting room.

Casey knew that Eleanor was exactly right. Cappie loved her and Cadence more than anything in the entire world. If things were going to be awkward with his parents she could deal with that. They only come around once every couple of years anyway. It's not like she would have to deal with it often.

She was just about to Cappie's room when she was stopped by Cappie's parents walking out.

"Oh Casey, so glad we met up with you," said Tobias.

"Why? Are you leaving already?" Casey asked trying not to sound mean in her tone of voice.

"We will probably leave later today," Tobias replied. "But right now we're just headed out to get some lunch."

"Oh, OK. Well, see you later," said Casey as she tried to walk past them.

"Not so fast," said April grabbing Casey's arm. "We need to talk."

"Look," said Casey stopping and taking a deep breath. "I'm not going to apologize for what I said."

"Well I think that would certainly be the right thing to do," said April. "We are Cappie's parents, whether you like it or not."

There was a brief silence as Casey wasn't sure how to respond to April's comment.

"We actually didn't stop you to talk about that exactly," said Tobias.

"So then what do you want to talk about?" Casey asked.

"Cappie is under a lot of stress right now," said April. "And the last thing he needs to know is what happened between us a few days ago. I just want all of us to be on the same page."

"What is that supposed to mean?" Casey asked.

"We basically told Cappie that you called us to tell us about him and we hopped in the car and came here as soon as we could," said April. "For all he knows everything is fine between us and we didn't even tell him about the trip to Africa at the moment. He needs to focus on himself right now and not family drama."

"So you want me to lie to him?" Casey asked taking a step away from April and Tobias.

"Not exactly lie to him," said Tobias. "You don't even have to mention anything if he doesn't ask about it."

"And what if he does ask something about it?" Casey asked.

"Then you tell him exactly what we already told him," said April. "That way everyone in the situation wins and Cappie can focus on his own recovery."

"So what happened with the trip to Africa?" Casey asked.

"As long as we can get to New York by three o'clock tomorrow we can still make it," said Tobias. "We told them about Cappie being in the hospital and they were able to change our flight."

"So you've come to see him for a few hours and then leave for Africa?" asked Casey. "How are you going to explain to him you're leaving?"

"We'll tell him we got the call while we were out to lunch about the trip," said April. "Then we'll leave and drive through the night to get there in time."

"This is just so messed up," said Casey. "Why can't you just tell him the truth for once? He's always been so faithful and honest to the two of you."

"Casey this is more of a family issue between us and Cappie," said April. "Let's just stick with the plan and we will deal with whatever issues we have with Cappie later."

"Fine. You guys go ahead and do whatever you want to do," said Casey as she finally walked past them.

"Thanks Casey. Glad we could talk," Casey heard Tobias say as she approached Cappie's door.

She turned around and watched the two of them walk off to go and get some lunch. Honestly, it wouldn't surprise her if the two of them didn't come back. For all she knew they were off to New York right now to catch their plane. The fact that they had the nerve to ask her to lie to Cappie caused those upset feelings to come back. She took a few deep breaths and thought about what Eleanor had said to her. Cappie and she were a family now and that is all that should matter to him.

Cappie smiled at Casey as soon as he saw her walk through the door. Casey smiled back at him as she walked towards his bed.

"Sleeping already?" Casey softly asked as she saw Cadence cuddled up next to Cappie fast asleep.

"Yeah, I guess she must find this bed a lot more comfortable than I do," said Cappie with a small laugh.

"I think it helps that she doesn't have a broken back," Casey replied.

"You're probably right," said Cappie as he patted a vacant spot on the bed for Casey to sit down. "You missed my parents," he said as he watched Casey slowly sit down on the bed.

"I actually talked with them briefly in the hall on their way out," said Casey. "Sorry I didn't come back sooner. I got to talking to the nicest old lady in the waiting room. She's here visiting her husband too."

"You've always had a soft spot for old people haven't you?" Cappie asked.

"I guess so," Casey replied. "But she reminded me so much of my grandma. We probably could have talked for hours if I didn't leave the waiting room."

"Well I'm glad you found a new friend," said Cappie with a small laugh. "And I wanted to thank you for calling my parents. It was so good seeing them today. They were the last people I expected to come and visit. You must have some very good powers of persuasion."

"Well telling them that their son was in a fire on the edge of death probably helped too," said Casey trying her hardest to still tell Cappie the truth without having to admit what exactly happened.

"They said they'll probably be in town for a few days," said Cappie. "So I guess they'll be here for Cadence's birthday after all."

"Oh, nice," said Casey softly, knowing that Cappie's statement was a complete lie.

The smile fell off Cappie's face as he gave Casey a concerned look. "Is everything OK?" he asked.

"Yeah, why wouldn't it be?" Casey asked defending herself.

"You just seem a little sad or upset," said Cappie. "Are you still worried about me? I feel pretty good. Hopefully they can get me out of this ICU soon and back home."

"Well I'm glad you feel OK," said Casey avoiding Cappie's question. She wasn't really worried about him and telling him she was would be lying and she didn't want to do that. The conversation needed to be changed before she said something she was going to regret. She turned her gaze towards Cadence and smiled. "She really missed you," Casey said.

"I could tell," Cappie replied. "She hasn't left my side since we let her in here. She wouldn't even get up to give my parents hugs which I thought was a little strange. I thought for sure her and my mom would be great friends once they actually met."

Casey smiled on the inside. It was like Cadence knew something wasn't right about Cappie's parents and she didn't want to have any part of it. "It was probably just a bad time for her," said Casey. "She's pretty tired from the looks of it."

"You're probably right," said Cappie as he stroked Cadence's hair gently. He took Casey's hand with his other hand and smiled. "I love you two so much," he continued. "I'm the luckiest guy in the world."

"I think you're pretty great yourself," said Casey leaning in and giving Cappie a soft kiss on the lips.

Just as she was backing away her cell phone rang. She quickly pulled it out and hit the silent button so it didn't wake Cadence up.

"It's Ashleigh," said Casey standing up. "I'm going to take it outside so I don't wake up Cadence."

"OK," said Cappie nodding his head as Casey walked out of the room.

"Hey Ash," she said answering the phone.

"Hey Case, how are things going?" Ashleigh asked.

"Very well," Casey replied. "Cappie came off the breathing tube last night. So he's awake and talking now."

"Oh that's great news!" exclaimed Ashleigh. "I can't wait to see him."

"He's looking forward to seeing you guys too," said Casey.

"Yeah, I wanted to call and let you know that we are almost on our way," said Ashleigh. "The doctor will be in shortly to sign Beaver's discharge papers. They thought he was going to be in early this morning but apparently he had some emergency to take care of instead. So we're getting a later start than we thought."

"That's OK Ash," said Casey. "Just take your time. We're going to be here for a while. I brought Cadence today so we'll probably stay until close to her bedtime unless she starts to get fussing before that."

"Sounds good," Ashleigh replied. "I'll see you in a couple of hours then."

"Great. Bye Ash," said Casey as she hung up the phone.

Casey was about to turn around and walk back towards Cappie's room when something caught her eye in the waiting room. She watched as two nurses escorted Eleanor out of the waiting room. She had several tissues in her hands and was sobbing.

"Eleanor, is everything OK?" Casey asked walking towards them.

Eleanor stopped and looked up at Casey. She had tears rolling down her cheeks at rapid speeds. The hurt expression in her eyes even caused some tears to swell up in Casey's eyes.

"He's gone sweetheart," said Eleanor. "Stan has passed."

"Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry," said Casey as she wrapped her arms around Eleanor.

Eleanor blew her nose with one of the tissues she had in her hand as she backed away from Casey.

"Is there anything I can do?" Casey asked softly.

Eleanor grabbed Casey's hand and squeezed it tightly. "Life is short my dear," she said. "Hold on to every moment you have with your husband and have no regrets. You—you just never know when you might lose him."

"I will," Casey replied squeezing her hand back. "And I'll be praying for you."

"Thank you," said Eleanor as she let go of Casey's hand and slowly walked away with the nurse's at her side.

Casey stood there and watched her walk away as a few tears escaped her own eyes. Eleanor was right. Life is short and there is no reason she should be lying to Cappie about what happened. He deserved to know the truth and it was silly of her to be protecting his parents by telling Cappie they actually cared. She wiped the tears off of her face and made her way back to Cappie's room. She opened the door quickly this time and walked right in.

"Is everything OK with Ashleigh and Beaver?" Cappie asked noticing Casey's hasty actions.

"Everything is fine with them," Casey replied.

"Case, it looks like you've been crying," said Cappie noticing her eyes were bloodshot and she was sniffling. "What is going on?"

"Remember that old lady I told you I was talking to?" Casey asked.

Cappie nodded his head yes.

"Well her husband just passed away," said Casey, the tears forming in her eyes again. "And when I talked to her in the hall she told me to have no regrets and hold onto the moments we share for as long as I can."

"OK…." said Cappie, unsure of what Casey was actually trying to say.

"Well, I don't want to lie to you," said Casey.

"Whoa," said Cappie with a sad expression now on his face. "You've been lying to me about something?"

"No, not exactly," Casey replied as she began to pace beside Cappie's hospital bed. "Someone asked me to lie for them. And I was going to do it. But Eleanor made me realize that all that should matter is the two of us and our family. And lying to you would be a stupid mistake on my part."

"Case, you're scaring me," said Cappie.

Casey took a deep breath and stopped pacing. She looked directly at Cappie and watched him as he nervously ran his hands through Cadence's hair.

"It's your parents," said Casey.

"What about them?" Cappie asked.

"I didn't call them," said Casey. "They called me to tell me they wouldn't be here for Cadence's birthday because they were invited to go on a safari to Africa. Now don't get me wrong, I would have called them to let them know what was going on with you. I was just so worried about you and everything at the beginning of this whole mess that I didn't call anyone at the time."

"OK," said Cappie nodding his head. "I'm not sure what the big deal is because they are here now."

Casey hesitated. "They wouldn't be here if I hadn't guilt-tripped them into doing it," she finally said.

"What do you mean?" Cappie asked as he stopped running his hands through Cadence's hair and pushed his own hair out of his face.

"They told me they weren't going to come because this African safari was a once in a lifetime experience that they couldn't pass up," Casey replied. "I then said some not-so-nice things to them on the phone and hung up on them. And here they are several days later."

"Mind elaborating on these not-so-nice things you said to them?" Cappie asked, a slight look of anger was forming on his face.

"I told them that all they care about is themselves and blamed them for not being a part of our lives since Cadence was born," said Casey. "And then I told them that you're more mature than the two of them will ever be."

Casey looked away at first, afraid of what Cappie's reaction was going to be. But when he didn't respond after a few seconds she turned and looked at him. His eyes were staring straight ahead at the wall in front of his bed. He was more than upset at this point. His expression reminded Casey of the cartoon characters she used to watch when she was younger who would have steam blow out of their ears whenever they were mad. She was sure that if Cappie could blow steam out of his ears he certainly would be doing it at this point.

"So all this talk about how they came as soon as they heard the news and staying for a few days for Cadence's birthday is just a bunch of bullshit?" Cappie asked, raising his voice.

They both watched as Cadence stirred next to him. But she merely repositioned herself and went back to sleep.

"They stopped me in the hall and told me they are heading to New York later today to catch their flight to Africa tomorrow since you're doing OK," said Casey. "And they asked me to go along with the story because you needed to concentrate on your health and not have to worry about family drama."

"Well shit, there would be no family drama if they were just normal parents who cared about their son and his family," said Cappie, his voice a little lower this time.

Casey wanted so badly to tell Cappie to watch his language with Cadence in the room but she figured now was not the time to mention anything.

"I'm sorry Cap," said Casey as she began to pace again.

"Wait, what are you sorry about?" Cappie asked.

"For saying those things to your parents," Casey replied. "This is all my fault. If I would have just kept my mouth shut none of this would have happened."

"Will you come and sit over here please?" asked Cappie pointing to the empty spot on his bed.

Casey slowly walked over and sat down. She wiped a few tears that were running down her cheek as she looked up at Cappie.

"This is not your fault Case," said Cappie taking her hand. "You probably said the things I've been too chicken to say to my parents for years. This is their fault. They are the ones that started all of this by choosing to go to Africa instead of visiting me."

"I know," said Casey looking down at the bed. "But they clearly don't like me now. Guess I'm no longer their favorite daughter-in-law."

Cappie lifted Casey's chin up to look at him.

"First of all," he said with a small smile. "You are their only daughter-in-law. And secondly, they don't have any reason to not like you. You were only telling the truth when you said those things to them. I always hoped hearing the truth would make them turn around and become more active in my life. But that is obviously not how things happened given the fact that they are planning on heading out to New York later today."

"Aren't you hurt about the whole situation?" Casey asked.

"I'm not hurt, I'm pissed," said Cappie. "But I'm mad at my parents, not you. And I'm not going to take that out on you. How many times before have I told you that you and Cadence are my family now?"

"Several," said Casey with a sheepish smile.

"Well then you should know that it's the truth then," said Cappie. "I actually think it's great you said those things to them. It even makes me a little more proud to be your husband knowing you'll stand up for me like that."

"Really?" Casey asked.

"Of course," Cappie nodded as he wiped the rest of the tears off Casey's face. "And right now I'm awake and feeling much better so I'm not going anywhere. I know you're upset about that old lady's husband dying but your husband is right here loving you even more than the last time I told you."

Casey smiled. "I love you too Cap."

Cappie reached up and pulled Casey closer to him so the two of them could share a passionate kiss.

"Ewwwww," said Cadence causing the two of them to break apart, smiling at each other.

"Nice to see that you're finally awake," said Cappie putting his arm around Cadence.

"Did you have a good nap?" Casey asked.

"Yup," Cadence replied. "Where people go?" she asked.

"Oh, they went to go and get something to eat," said Cappie.

"I hungry too," Cadence replied.

"Well you can come with me and we can go down to the cafeteria and see if we can get you something to eat," said Casey.

"OK, bye daddy," said Cadence standing on the bed and leaning in to give Cappie a kiss.

"Well hold up," said Cappie softly pushing her away. "Daddy can come with you guys."

"I don't know about that," said Casey. "The doctors never said if you are allowed to get out of bed. We don't want you doing too much too soon."

"I'll be fine," said Cappie moving to sit on the edge of the bed. "Why don't you go and ask one of the nurses if they have a wheelchair if that will make you feel better. You can push me down there."

"Daddy, I see your bum bum," said Cadence giggling as she still stood on the bed behind Cappie looking at his hospital gown that was not tied in the back.

"Hey, no looking at daddy's bum bum," said Casey laughing herself. "That's for mommy's eyes only."

"Nice to know you two are fighting over my butt," said Cappie joining in the laughing.

"Bum bum daddy," said Cadence. "Butt is bad word."

"Oh, sorry," said Cappie.

Casey just rolled her eyes as she turned and walked out to the nurse's station. She was waiting for one of the nurses to come back with a wheelchair when she heard Cadence scream.

"DADDY!"

Casey turned and ran back in the room with a couple of nurses who were standing nearby to find Cappie on the floor next to the bed.

"I can't stand Case," said Cappie in a worried tone. "What in the hell is going on?"

* * *

_**A/N: Anyone out there actually expect me to post a chapter today? LoL....I sure didn't! But I got the spark to write and was up until 4 or 5 in the morning writing this last night. Hope everyone enjoyed it. As always, I love to hear what you think :0)**_


	129. Promises

PROMISES

The lift team, which consisted of three large and muscular guys, came and got Cappie off of the ground and back into the bed. Shortly after the doctor came in.

"Mr. Cappington, what happened?" Dr. Felix asked.

"I don't know doc," Cappie replied. "I did OK just sitting up on the edge of the bed. I stood up to try and tie my gown in the back of me while my wife went and got a wheelchair and the next thing I knew I was on the floor. My legs wouldn't hold me up."

"Do you have any pain from the fall?" Dr. Felix asked.

"I'm a little sore," Cappie replied. "But nothing other than that."

"OK, let me take a look here," said Dr. Felix.

The doctor walked around Cappie's bed and put him through a series of strength tests. Cappie was able to still move his legs. He could bend his knees, lift his legs straight in the air and wiggle his toes.

"You see, this is what I don't understand," Cappie said once the doctor was finished. "Why can I move my legs but I'm not able to stand? I don't think I'm paralyzed or anything."

"Well from my assessment I think you're just weak Mr. Cappington," Dr. Felix replied as he jotted a few notes down in Cappie's chart. "Statistics show that for every day you lay in bed you lose a week's worth of your strength. You've been in bed for about a week now so it's no wonder you're weak. Your legs just aren't strong enough right now to hold your body weight."

"So you're saying that all I have to do is get my legs a little stronger and I will be able to stand and walk again?" Cappie asked.

"Yes, but this is something that you're not going to be able to do on your own," Dr. Felix replied. "I'm going to look into getting you into some sort of physical rehab before going home."

"How long do you think it's going to take?" Cappie asked.

"Hard to say," the doctor replied. "My guess would be a couple of weeks."

"Couple of weeks?!" Cappie exclaimed. "Doc I've got a lot of important things coming up. I can't be gone for that long."

"Well you still have a few days here in the hospital," said Dr. Felix. "We'll talk about things as they get closer to your discharge date."

With that said Dr. Felix returned Cappie's chart to the holder by the door and walked out of the room. Cappie turned and looked at Casey holding Cadence sitting on a chair in the corner of the room. He sighed loudly and gave her a worried look.

"Hey, it's not such horrible news," Casey stated. "At least you're not paralyzed. You're going to be able to walk again."

"I know," Cappie replied in a frustrated tone. "But if I have to go to this rehab thing I'm going to miss Cadence's birthday and your next doctor's appointment and whatever else comes up."

"Cap, you need to worry about yourself," said Casey as she stood up and walked over to Cappie's bed. "We'll be fine. We just want you to be better."

"Daddy, are you OK?" Cadence asked as Casey set her on Cappie's bed.

"Yeah, I'm OK," Cappie replied.

"You scared me," said Cadence sadly.

"I'm sorry sweetheart," said Cappie wrapping his arms around Cadence. "I didn't know that was going to happen. You did a good job calling for help though."

"Thanks," Cadence replied leaning her head against Cappie's chest.

"It doesn't get any better than this," said Cappie with a small smile as he rubbed his hand up and down Cadence's back.

Casey stood there and stared at her husband and daughter when a knock on the door startled her. She instantly dreaded that it may be his parents coming back from lunch. But this time it was much more welcomed guests, Ashleigh and Beaver.

"Casey!" exclaimed Ashleigh as she instantly ran into Casey's arms. "Gosh I missed you so much."

"I missed you too Ash," said Casey squeezing her tightly. "It's so good to see you."

Beaver walked in slowly behind Ashleigh. Casey let go of her and hugged him.

"Nice to see you Case," said Beaver.

"You too Beave," Casey replied. "I'm so glad that you are better."

"Me too," said Beaver backing away.

Casey stood back and watched as Beaver slowly made his way to Cappie's bed.

"Hey Beave," said Cappie extending his hand.

"Hey," Beaver replied softly as he shook Cappie's hand.

Casey could sense that Cappie and Beaver had some things to discuss.

"Hey Ash, Cadence and I were just talking about going to the cafeteria and getting something to eat," said Casey hinting of their exit. "Would you like to come with us?"

"Sure," Ashleigh replied reading Casey's hint. "Come on Cadence, let's go get some food," she said walking over and picking Cadence up from Cappie's bed.

"We'll be back in a little bit," said Casey as the three of them left the room.

Beaver pulled one of the chairs up next to Cappie's bed and sat down. The two of them sat there in silence for about a minute, both of them unsure of what exactly to say.

"Pretty crazy time we've been through huh?" Beaver finally asked.

"Tell me about it," Cappie replied. "How have you been feeling?"

"I'm feeling pretty good," Beaver replied. "I've still got a lot of breathing medications they have me on and I have to follow up with a lung specialist. I guess I inhaled quite a bit of smoke."

"That was so scary being trapped in there," said Cappie. "I really felt like my life flashed right before my eyes. Once those boards fell there was nowhere to go."

"I tried everything I could to keep that board from hitting you Cap," said Beaver somberly. "Everything just happened so fast."

"I know Beave," Cappie replied. "But there is no use in dwelling on everything. We're both alive and that is all that matters."

"Yeah, but look how banged up you are Cap," said Beaver. "I can't help but feel guilty. If I hadn't—"

"Beave, don't," Cappie interrupted. "Please."

Cappie watched as tears began to swell in Beaver's eyes.

"Cap, you are my best friend in the entire world," Beaver said becoming choked up. "And I almost got you killed."

Beaver buried his head in his hands trying his hardest to fight off the tears. Cappie sat up in bed and put his hand on Beaver's shoulder.

"Beave, this is not your fault," said Cappie. "It was an accident."

"I'm sorry Cap," said Beaver looking up at him and wiping the tears off his cheeks. "It just doesn't seem fair that I'm well and going home and you're still here fighting."

"It's just the way it is," Cappie replied. "Neither of us can change the past. I really wish you wouldn't dwell on it like this."

Beaver stood up and began to pace around the room.

"Is there anything I can do for you Cap?" he asked. "I feel like I need to do something."

"I really don't need anything," Cappie replied. "But I promise if I do need something I'll let you know. But please, I really can't have you all stressed out about this. It's not needed. You're still not one hundred percent yourself."

"How about I take care of you when you get home?" Beaver stopped pacing and asked. "I'll make your meals, I'll do your laundry, whatever you want."

"Beave, that is the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard," Cappie replied with a laugh. "Besides, I'm not sure if I'm going to be able to go home anytime soon."

"Why?" Beaver asked.

"I can't walk," Cappie replied shrugging his shoulders. "The doctor says I'm too weak and I'll probably have to go somewhere and get some rehab before going home."

"Rehab? Are you on some kind of drugs?" Beaver asked.

"Not that kind of rehab," Cappie replied with a small laugh. "Physical rehab. They can work on my strength and get me back up and walking around again."

"Wow, I had no clue," Beaver replied sitting back down in the chair.

"It's OK, really," Cappie replied. "Hopefully it will only be for a couple of weeks. That's if I even go."

"What do you mean IF you go?" Beaver asked. "You've got to get better."

"Yeah, but I also have a family I've got to tend to," Cappie replied. "I'm not sure if I can be away for another two weeks from them. Cadence is already latching onto me like I'll never come back if she lets go of me."

"She's just worried about you," Beaver replied. "We all are. And there is no way you're going to be able to go home if you can't walk."

"I know Beave," said Cappie with a sigh.

"You—" Beaver began but the door to Cappie's room opening interrupted him.

"Cappie!" exclaimed April as she walked up to his bed. "Your father and I just got the best news while we were out to lunch!"

"Don't mom," said Cappie, his voice low with anger. "It's not necessary."

"Wha—What are you talking about?" April asked taken back by Cappie's reaction.

"Casey told me everything," Cappie stated, staring right into his mother's eyes.

The room grew silent.

"Um, I'm going to, um, go join the girls for something to eat," said Beaver awkwardly as he left the room.

"Was that Beaver?" Tobias asked. "He looks a little different."

"Probably because he was in a fire dad," said Cappie somewhat sarcastically. "And so was I, in case you forgot."

"We know that honey," said April. "You're doing so well you'll probably be out of here in just a couple of days."

"You know, I'm really not in the mood for this kind of small talk," said Cappie. "Why don't you guys just leave and catch your flight to Africa. I'm sure that since I'm not dying anymore you guys can have a good time. Even though I'm pretty sure you would have had a good time even if you didn't know that I wasn't dying anymore."

"Now Cap, that's no way to talk," said Tobias. "You know we care about you."

"Do you?" Cappie asked back. "Because it's kind of hard to tell sometimes."

"Would we be here right now if we didn't care about you?" April asked.

"Would you be here right now if Casey didn't give you a piece of her mind?" Cappie rebutted.

Cappie watched as his parent's expressions turned into shock. Obviously they didn't think Casey was going to tell him EVERYTHING.

"Look mom and dad," said Cappie in a calmer tone. "I'm really not in any kind of shape to be fighting with you guys right now. I'm just going to tell you that I wish you guys were a little more involved in my life and leave it at that. I understand you have your own lives to live but there was no reason to lie to me."

"We were just trying to protect you son," said Tobias.

"I don't need to be protected dad. Don't you understand that?" Cappie asked. "I'm my own man with my own family now. And I thought that the two of you were going to be a big part of that family but it hasn't happened that way. I would think it would be very sad to know that your own granddaughter doesn't even recognize you. In fact, she was shy around the two of you, something I have never seen her do around people she doesn't know. That should tell you something."

"She'll get to know us Cap, you just see," said April.

"I'll believe it when I see it," said Cappie rolling his eyes.

"OK, we get it," said April walking over to Tobias. "You don't want us a part of your life anymore."

"Jesus mom, don't you listen?!" said Cappie throwing his arms into the arm. "I WANT you to be a part of my life but only if you want to be and make the effort to be. Otherwise, I don't know what to tell you."

The room grew silent again. Cappie saw his mom clench his dad's hand. She looked like she was very close to crying.

"Cap, I love you," said April fighting back tears. "I want to still be a part of your life."

"And I want you to also," Cappie replied. "But at the same time I need you guys to make my wife and children a part of your lives too because they are my life. Words can't even describe how much Cadence means to me. It was like she was sent to me from above to help me grow up and become a more responsible adult. And you guys should respect that Casey and I know we are ready to have another child. Casey is the greatest wife in the entire world. You two know how much she has meant to me since we first dated freshman year. I just don't want you guys to think differently of her because of this whole situation. Please don't be mad at her for what she said. She was just defending me."

"We know," said Tobias softly as he shook his head. "Casey is a good woman for even having the courage to say those things to us. If anything, it showed us how much she really cares about you."

"So can I count on you two making more of an effort to be in our lives?" Cappie asked.

"Of course," April replied. "All we want is for you to happy Cappie. That is our main priority."

"Good. Now come over her and give me a hug," said Cappie reaching his arms out to his parents.

April and Tobias each let out a half smile and slowly walked over to Cappie's bed and gave him a hug.

"I love you son," said Tobias as he backed away.

"I love you too honey," said April holding onto Cappie just a little bit longer.

"I love both of you too," said Cappie as April backed away. "And that is never going to change if you decide to really be a big part of my life or not."

"We know," said April as she wiped a single tear that fell down her cheek.

"Now get out of here you two and catch your plane to Africa," said Cappie. "Maybe I'll see you guys around the holidays?"

"We promise," said April.

Cappie waved goodbye to his parents as they exchanged one last look and walked out the door. He wanted so badly to believe his parents this time around. He wanted to believe they would call him when they returned from Africa to see how he was and tell him all about it. But deep down he knew that his parents were never going to change. He was always going to be second in their lives and hopefully one of these days he'll come to terms with that fact. But for now it still hurt and he couldn't wait for his beautiful wife and child to come back to his room and make things all better.

* * *

Rebecca and Evan arrived Saturday afternoon and were very helpful to Cappie and Casey. Rebecca organized a spa day on Sunday for her, Ashleigh and Casey. She knew with everything the girls had been through a nice massage and pedicure would hit just the spot.

Over the weekend Cappie did everything he could to try and improve his strength. He moved his legs around any chance he could get and made Beaver and Evan his honorary physical therapists. By the time Evan left on Sunday Cappie was able to stand up and do a few marches in place with Evan and Beaver on either side of him. He knew he still wasn't ready to go home but felt good that he was at least making some progress.

Monday morning Cappie was transferred to the inpatient rehab unit on the sixth floor of the hospital. He and Casey had tried to get him transferred to a place closer to their home so it wasn't as much of a drive for Casey to come see him but the doctors felt Cappie would have the best care if he stayed at the hospital he was currently at.

While one of the nurses put Cappie's things in his new room, the transporter took him down to the gym for his first physical therapy session. The gym was very large and filled with just about every piece of exercise equipment possible. There were also a lot of padded mats and weight sets around. Instantly Cappie knew he made the right decision by coming here.

"Hello, you must be Charles," said a woman reading Cappie's chart as she walked towards him.

"Please, call me Cappie," he replied shaking her hand.

"Cappie, hmm?" she asked. "Is that like your middle name or something?"

"More like a nickname," Cappie replied.

"Oh OK, well my name is Linda and I'll be your physical therapist."

Cappie looked Linda up and down and could just tell she was going to be the right person for him to work with. She was probably in her late thirties, early forties and had a look to her that told Cappie she was aggressive and meant business. And Cappie wanted to be pushed as much as possible because the sooner he got better the sooner he could go home.

"Well give me everything you got Linda," said Cappie. "I'm here to work hard and get home as soon as I can."

"Good, that's what I like to hear," Linda replied. "Let's get you started on some arm exercises to get you warmed up over on the pulley machine."

Cappie watched as Linda began to walk to the other side of the gym.

"Um, did you forget about me?" Cappie asked with a small laugh.

"Oh child, you have so much to learn," said Linda as she turned around and looked at Cappie. "You have arms, wheel yourself."

Cappie quickly wiped the smile off his face realizing how silly he sounded to have her push him after he just got done telling her he was here to work hard. He unlocked the breaks of the wheelchair and wheeled himself over to the machine she was standing next to.

"I want you to do this for about five minutes," she said handing him the pulleys. "I'll be back in a bit to check up on you."

Cappie began his exercises just as he was told. Over the next hour she put him through several exercises for his arms and his legs. Cappie couldn't believe how weak doing all the exercises made him feel. Before the fire he could have done most of these exercises without even breaking a sweat but doing them now made him feel like he had just ran a marathon.

"My muscles feel like jello," said Cappie as he sensed the end of the session was near.

"That's good. That means we're working," Linda replied. "I just have one more thing I want to do before I let you go to your room."

"Bring it on," said Cappie with a smirk.

Linda gave him a smirk back as she walked over to the equipment closet. She still had the smirk on her face as she walked out and set a walker right in front of Cappie.

"Um, what in the hell do you want me to do with that?" Cappie asked not finding any humor in her joke.

"I want you to stand up and maybe take a few steps if you can," she replied.

"You've got to be kidding me," said Cappie. "My eighty year old grandpa uses a walker. There is no way I'll be using one too."

Linda leaned her arms on the walker and bent down so she was eye to eye with Cappie.

"You want to walk again don't you?" she asked, the smirk now off of her face.

Cappie slowly shook his head yes.

"Then you have to start at the beginning and work your way up," she replied. "No man's ego is going to get in my way of making you better."

Cappie slouched in his wheelchair with a defeated look on his face.

"No time for pouting," said Linda. "Let's get up and stand."

One of the therapy assistants came over to help Linda get Cappie into a standing position. At first Cappie was hesitant to reach for the walker but in order to keep his balance he had no other choice but to grab onto it.

"Alright, let's take a couple of steps forward," said Linda.

"I can't," Cappie whined as he looked at the ground. "I'm too tired after all those exercises."

"Come on, you can do it," she said.

Cappie looked up and saw Casey and Cadence walk into the gym. And even though he felt like he didn't have any strength left in him he dug deep within and began to take a few steps forward.

"There you go," said Linda holding onto him tightly so he didn't fall. "You're doing great."

Cappie saw Casey instantly get a smile on her face and Cadence clap her hands together, a smile on her face also.

"OK, I have to sit down now," said Cappie as he lowered himself back down in the wheelchair the assistant was pushing behind him.

"Well that's a good start," said Linda. "I think you went about five feet today."

"Great," said Cappie. "Hopefully I can improve a little each day."

"With my help child you'll be out of here in no time," Linda replied.

"I like the way you talk," said Cappie with a smile.

Linda and he exchanged a high five and Cappie wheeled himself over to Casey and Cadence who were still standing by the door to the gym.

"You were looking really good out there babe," said Casey as she leaned down and gave Cappie a kiss.

"Well, I have good motivation," he replied as he picked up Cadence and put her in his lap.

"Hi daddy," said Cadence.

"How's my little girl?" Cappie asked.

"Daddy, you old man," said Cadence ignoring Cappie's question.

"What?" Cappie asked.

Cadence pointed to the walker Cappie had been using and giggled. Cappie rolled his eyes as he began to wheel back to his room.

"Well I think you looked very sexy with your walker," Casey said with a laugh.

"Thanks honey," said Cappie sarcastically.

They arrived at Cappie's new room. Cappie wheeled over to the bed and picked Cadence up out of his lap and set her down on the bed.

"So, I heard someone has a birthday tomorrow," he said.

"ME!" exclaimed Cadence.

"And what do you want for your birthday?" Cappie asked.

"Hmmmm," said Cadence thinking about it. "A PONY!"

Cappie and Casey both laughed.

"Where would you even keep a pony Cadence?" Casey asked.

"The garage," Cadence said very seriously.

"OK, besides a pony, what else do you want?" Cappie asked changing the subject away from the pony.

"Baby doll," Cadence replied.

"Well I think that's a much better option," said Cappie with a smile.

Cadence smiled back and laid down on the bed.

"Are you tired?" Casey asked.

Cadence shook her head yes. Casey took a book out of the bag she had brought and handed it to Cappie.

"How about daddy reads you a story?" Casey asked.

"OK," said Cadence as she turned on her side to face Cappie.

About ten minutes later Cappie finished the story and Cadence was fast asleep.

"She definitely got her sleeping habits from you Cap," said Casey. "You both fall asleep so quickly."

"What can I say, it's a gift," Cappie replied with a quiet laugh.

Casey went to the other side of the room and sat in one of the lounge chairs. Cappie wheeled himself over to be next to her.

"I feel bad she has to celebrate her second birthday in a hospital," said Casey with a sigh. "I had all these ideas of a fun party with our family and friends and some of the neighbor kids. We were talking about getting her a new big girl bed and other presents. But with everything that happened with you, her birthday got pushed to the back of my mind and I feel like I have nothing prepared for it."

"I know," said Cappie taking her hand. "We can maybe just celebrate it later."

"Well I don't want to do anything big until you're better," Casey replied. "And by the time that happens it will be too late. I guess we'll just have to have an amazing third birthday party for her next year to make up for this."

"I'm sure she'll be OK," Cappie stated. "As long as we're together with some cake and a few presents tomorrow she'll still have a good time."

"That's the problem," said Casey with a sigh. "I haven't been able to get any presents for her let alone a cake. I feel like a horrible mother."

"You're not a horrible mother," said Cappie squeezing her hand. "You have had a lot going on. I actually talked to your mom yesterday and she's taken care of some things. Your parents and Ashleigh and Beaver are coming tomorrow afternoon and bringing a few presents and a cake."

"Wow, that's great," said Casey somewhat surprised. "But she's not going to have anything from us and I have no idea when I'm going to have some time to do any shopping."

"Don't worry Case, everything is going to be fine," Cappie replied.

Casey leaned her head on Cappie's shoulder.

"I just want you to get better so we can all be a family again," she said with a sigh.

"We're still a family Case," said Cappie putting his arm around her. "And I'm giving everything I have to get better and get out of her as soon as I can. I promise."

"I know you are," said Casey. "I guess I'm just letting the stress get to me a little bit."

"Well don't," said Cappie reaching over with his other hand and rubbing Casey's stomach. "You know you can't afford to be stressed."

Casey just took a deep breath and dug her head deeper into Cappie's shoulder. Cappie gently rubbed her arm up and down and kissed her forehead. He sat in silence for a while watching Cadence sleep on the bed and holding Casey as tightly as he could. He wanted nothing more than to make everything better for them.

Cadence woke up about an hour later. Cappie had the nurses help him back into bed and the three of them snuggled for a while watching some television. The girls stayed to eat dinner with Cappie and got ready to leave just before it was time for Cadence to go to bed.

"I will see you tomorrow princess," said Cappie giving Cadence several kisses on the cheek.

"My burtday!" said Cadence happily.

"It sure is," Cappie replied. "So you need to be a good girl for mommy tonight and go to bed as soon as you get home OK?"

"OK daddy," said Cadence shaking her head.

"That's my girl," said Cappie with a smile. "Give me a kiss."

Cadence leaned in and gave Cappie a wet kiss on the cheek.

"Daddy you hurt," she said rubbing her hand on the overgrown hair on Cappie's cheek. He hadn't shaved in days.

"I'll shave and be nice and smooth for you tomorrow," said Cappie.

Cappie set Cadence down and turned to Casey who was sitting on the edge of his bed. He immediately put his hands on the sides of her face and pulled her in for a nice long kiss.

"I love you," said Cappie backing away slightly. "Everything will be alright. Go home, put Cadence to bed and take a long hot bath. It'll make you feel better."

"That does sound good," Casey replied. "And I love you too. It's lonely in that big bed without you at night."

"Soon," was all Cappie said as he leaned in and kissed her again.

Casey backed away and picked Cadence up.

"We'll see you tomorrow," she said walking towards the door.

"Call me when you get home so I know you made it," Cappie said. "Love you girls."

"Wuv you too daddy," Cadence replied waving her hand as her and Casey walked out the door.

Cappie leaned back in his bed and sighed as soon as the door shut. He knew things were getting harder on Casey. It was almost like she was becoming a single parent at the moment and Cappie knew it couldn't be easy on her. He then got an idea. He picked up the phone and began dialing.

"Hey Beave," he said when Beaver answered the phone. "I think I'm going to take you up on your offer now."

* * *

_**A/N: Sorry it took me so long to get this new chapter up everyone. I kind of hit a writer's block for a couple of days and wasn't really sure where I was going with this part of the story. But I think things are more on track now so hopefully I'll get another chapter up sooner than later next time around. Anyone have any guesses as to what Cappie is asking Beaver to do? Let me know, always anxious to hear what everyone thinks :0)**_


	130. Sweet Emotion

SWEET EMOTION

The next afternoon Cappie, Casey, her parents, Ashleigh and Beaver all gathered in the hospital's activity room for Cadence's birthday. Casey's parents brought a few balloons and other decorations to make the place look more like a birthday party and less like a room at the hospital. Ashleigh was able to get a cake at one of the local bakers with Dora the Explorer on it as this was Cadence's current favorite show.

"OK sweetheart," said Casey as she walked with Cadence near the door. "Time for your birthday party."

"Yay!" said Cadence as she let go of Casey's hand and ran into the activity room.

"Does somebody have a birthday today?" Cappie asked as Cadence entered the room.

"You silly daddy," she said giggling and running up to him in his wheelchair. "It's my day!"

"It is!" said Cappie excitedly as he lifted Cadence up in his lap. "I don't suppose you want to share some of that cake with me?"

"Na-uh," said Cadence shaking her head no.

"Well then I guess I'm just going to have to tickle you then," said Cappie as he began running his hands all over the spots he knew Cadence was the most ticklish at. Cadence couldn't help from hysterically laughing and giggling.

"OK! OK!" she yelled trying to get her dad's attention.

Cappie stopped tickling her and stared at her in her eyes.

"You can have some," she said with a smile as she climbed off his lap and went over to Ashleigh.

"Hey Cadence!" said Ashleigh. "How old are you going to be today?"

"Two!" said Cadence as she held up two fingers.

"Very good," Ashleigh replied. "I'm sure two will be a very exciting age for you."

"Why?" Cadence asked.

"Because you're not really a baby anymore," Ashleigh replied. "You're a big girl now. And pretty soon you're going to be a sister."

"Baby," said Cadence as she went over and gently rubbed Ashleigh's stomach.

"Yes, but these are Auntie Ashleigh's babies," she said. "Your sister or brother is in your mommy's tummy."

Cadence turned to look at Casey who was organizing some presents and the cake on a table in the corner of the room.

"I wuv my mommy," she said with a smile as she turned back towards Ashleigh.

"OK, enough of that," said Beaver picking Cadence up. "Don't you love your Uncle Beaver too?"

"Horsey ride!" said Cadence excitedly.

"So you'll love me if I give you a horsey ride?" Beaver asked.

Cadence shook her head yes. So Beaver set her down and got down on all fours. Ashleigh helped Cadence get on Beaver's back and he began to move around the room as Cadence giggled away up on his back.

Casey caught Cappie looking at them with a sad expression on his face and walked over to him.

"Everything OK hun?" she asked.

"Sure," said Cappie softly without taking his gaze off of Beaver and Cadence.

"Doesn't sound like everything is OK," Casey replied.

"I guess I'm just a little bummed watching them be together and have so much fun," he said with a sigh. "That's supposed to be me down there with my daughter giving her a horsey ride, not Beaver."

"I know babe," said Casey as she set her hand on his shoulder. "And that will be you soon enough. I think it's great though that Beaver is able to make this day more fun for her. She's having fun Cap. Isn't that the only thing that should matter?"

Cappie stared at Beaver and Cadence for another few seconds before turning to look at Casey.

"Yeah, I guess you're right," he said with a half smile. "Thanks Case."

Casey leaned down and gave him a small kiss.

"Alright horsey," she said getting Beaver to stop. "I think it's time for the birthday girl to open some presents."

"Oh-yeah!" said Cadence as she quickly hopped off Beaver's back and ran over to her mom.

"Here, you can sit in this chair," said Casey as she moved a chair near the table with the presents on it.

"No," said Cadence shaking her head. "I wanna sit with daddy."

Casey and Cappie exchanged smiles. Casey could tell Cadence's remark lifted Cappie's spirits a little bit.

"I think I can find a little room for you up here," said Cappie as he lifted Cadence up onto his lap.

"OK, the first two presents are from grandma and grandpa," said Casey as she handed the first wrapped gift to Cadence.

Everyone watched intently as Cadence tore the wrapping paper off of the gift as quickly as her little hands would let her.

"Oh my!" she exclaimed when she picked up the lid to the box to find several packs of crayons, washable markers and coloring books.

"Someone told us that you like to color," said Mrs. Cartwright. "So we thought you would like them."

"Yes I do!" said Cadence. "Color now!"

"No sweetheart, not yet," said Casey taking the box away from her. "You still have more presents to open."

"OK," said Cadence as Casey handed a bigger box to Cadence.

This time Cappie had to help stabilize the box on his lap as Cadence did her best to unwrap the present.

"Ooooo," said Casey as Cadence got all of the paper off. "It's a play tea set Cadence. You can now have tea parties."

"You can come mommy," said Cadence smiling at Casey.

"Why thank you," said Casey smiling back at her. "You should thank grandma and grandpa for your presents."

"Thanks mama and papa," said Cadence.

"You're welcome dear," said Mr. Cartwright.

"OK, this next one is from Ashleigh and Beaver," said Casey as she handed the gift to Cadence.

Cadence unwrapped the gift and it took her a couple of seconds to realize what is was exactly.

"LOOK MOMMY!" she exclaimed once she figured it out. "It's a purse!"

"You have a purse?" Casey asked. "How did Ashleigh know you needed a purse?"

"I be just like mommy and Auntie Ashy," said Cadence as she opened the hot pink play purse she got and pulled out several items like a plastic versions of a pair of keys, make-up, mirror and cell phone.

"A girl is never too young for her first purse," said Ashleigh smiling at Cadence's enthusiasm over the gift.

"Thank you," said Cadence as she put her things back in the purse.

Casey took the purse from Cadence and handed her the next present. It was another large one that Cappie had to help her with.

"This one is from Evan and Rebecca," said Casey. "They sent it to you in the mail."

"I like mail," said Cadence as she and Cappie worked together to unwrap the gift.

"Wow, this is neat Cadence," said Cappie as he threw the paper in a trash bag near him.

"What is it?" Cadence asked as all she saw was a pink trunk in front of her.

"Let's open the trunk to find out," said Cappie.

He helped Cadence unlatch the trunk and inside she found some princess dresses, tiaras, shoes and jewelry.

"AH!" Cadence gasped. "I dress like pincess!"

"Yeah look," said Cappie holding up one of the dresses. "You can be snow white—"

"Um, Cap, that's Cinderella," Casey interrupted.

"Oh," said Cappie slightly embarrassed. "Well here's another one where you can be sleeping beauty."

"That one is snow white Cap," said Casey holding in her laughter.

"Daddy, you don't know pincess," said Cadence shaking her head.

"I guess you'll just have to teach me then when I get home," said Cappie as he kissed Cadence on the cheek.

"This one is from Uncle Rusty," said Casey as she took the dress trunk from Cadence and handed her another present.

Cadence unwrapped the gift slowly and lifted up two DVDs in her hands, one Dora the Explorer and the other Toy Story movie.

"Wow, Uncle Rusty did a good job picking out some good movies for you," said Casey as she took them from Cadence. "We'll have to watch some of those soon."

"Toy Story is one of my favorite movies," said Ashleigh. "I can't wait until you're old enough and I can introduce you to Clueless."

"Do you really have to torture the girl?" asked Beaver jokingly.

"Oh be quiet," said Ashleigh playfully hitting him. "You almost cried at the end of it."

"Now you two behave or I'll have to put you in time out," said Cappie shaking his finger at them.

Beaver stuck his tongue out at Cappie as Casey handed Cadence the last present.

"This one is from mom and dad," she said.

"A new book," said Cadence as she finished unwrapping the present.

"It's not just any book Cadence," said Cappie taking the book from Cadence. "This was my favorite book growing up. My mom and dad used to read it to me before bed and I want to pass that tradition onto you now."

"Can we read now?" Cadence asked.

"No, I think I want mommy to read it to you tonight before you go to bed," Cappie replied. "Just like my mom used to do with me."

"OK," said Cadence as she jumped down from Cappie's lap and went over to the cake. "Now?" she asked Casey eagerly.

"Yes, we can have cake now," said Casey.

Over the next half an hour everyone ate cake and juice and told Cadence several stories of things that happened to her when she was a baby. After the cake and everything was cleaned up Ashleigh and Beaver left while Mr. and Mrs. Cartwright set up things so Cadence could color. Casey took advantage of this time to take Cappie aside and talk to him.

"Things turned out pretty well," Casey said as she leaned against the wall and watched her parents play with Cadence.

"Yeah, better than expected," Cappie replied. "That was really nice of Rusty and Evan and Rebecca to send things to Cadence."

"I was surprised," Casey replied. "They were on the doorstep when I got home yesterday which was nice."

There was a brief pause between the two of them.

"So, was there something you wanted to talk about?" Cappie finally asked.

"Yeah, sort of," said Casey hesitantly.

"Something wrong?" Cappie asked with concern.

"No, not really," Casey replied. "I hate to even bring this up but I didn't know if you remembered that Ash and I have doctor appointments tomorrow with Dr. Snyder."

"Yeah, I remember," Cappie stated, unsure of exactly why Casey was bringing this up.

"Well, I know that you're not going to be able to be there," she said. "But tomorrow is the day we were supposed to find out whether we're having a boy or a girl. And I didn't know if you just wanted to be surprised or if you wanted to know if we should just wait until you can be there too or what you want to do."

"Wow, I didn't realize it was that time in this pregnancy already," Cappie replied.

"I know, time is certainly flying by," Casey stated.

Cappie leaned forward and pulled Casey to sit on his lap.

"What do you want to do?" he asked looking at her.

"Well, it's kind of killing me not knowing what we are going to have," she said. "But at the same time I'm not sure how I would feel finding out with you not there."

"I want to know too," said Cappie. "So why don't you find out tomorrow and then come and tell me?"

"Are you sure you'll be OK with that?" Casey asked. "I can cancel the appointment until you get out of the rehab if you want. It's—"

Cappie reached up and put his fingers over Casey's lips.

"You know how important it is for you to go to your appointments with the high risk your pregnancy is," said Cappie interrupting her. "So you go and find out and then come back and tell me. I don't mind, really."

"Are you sure?" Casey asked. "I feel like I'm leaving you out of things."

"It's not like I have much of a choice," Cappie replied. "But I really think it will be good for you to know what the sex of the baby is. We can always use some good news with everything that has happened recently."

"Yeah, that's true," Casey replied.

Cappie wrapped his arms around her and pulled her as close to him as he could.

"I love you Casey Cappington," he said softly. "And I can't wait to find out tomorrow what beautiful bundle of joy we will be welcoming into the world in the next few months."

"I love you too babe," Casey replied kissing him on the lips. "And I promise I'll come here right after the appointment so I can tell you as soon as possible. I could even call you if that would be better."

"Nah, I want to have you tell me in person," Cappie replied. "That way I can kiss you and hug you and share the moment."

"Good thinking," Casey replied. "I—"

"Mommy, Daddy come look!" Cadence exclaimed interrupting their conversation.

"Duty calls," said Casey as she got off of Cappie's lap and the two of them headed over to see the picture Cadence had colored.

Soon after their conversation Mr. and Mrs. Cartwright left and Casey and Cadence stayed for the rest of the evening until it was time for Cadence to get to bed. They said goodbye to Cappie and made their way back to the house.

Casey pulled into the garage and picked Cadence up out of her car seat.

"How come you didn't fall asleep on the way home?" Casey asked.

"You read story," Cadence replied.

"Ohhh," Casey replied remembering the book Cappie had gotten her as a present.

Casey made a couple of trips inside the house bringing everything in from the car while Cadence waited patiently for her to finish.

"OK," said Casey setting down the last load. "Let's head upstairs and get ready for bed."

Casey handed Cadence the book and picked her up to carry her upstairs. They reached Cadence's room and Casey turned on the light to find the room looking differently than the way she left it earlier in the day.

"WHOA! A big girl bed!" exclaimed Cadence as she wiggled her way out of Casey's arms and ran over to the bed.

"How in the…." Casey uttered trying to figure out exactly what was going on.

"Look mommy!" exclaimed Cadence. "Baby doll!"

Casey watched as Cadence picked up a doll that was resting on the pillow of the bed.

"My baby," said Cadence as she squeezed the doll tightly.

As Cadence explored her new bed Casey pulled out her cell phone and called Cappie.

"I see you made it home," he said answering the phone.

"Are you the sneaky person behind this?" Casey asked.

"My, whatever do you mean?" Cappie asked innocently.

"Cadence's new bed," Casey replied. "Somehow a big girl bed appeared in her room while we were visiting you today with a brand new baby doll on top of it."

"Can't a dad spoil his princess?" Cappie asked.

"Well sure," Casey replied. "I just wasn't expecting something like that. It took me by surprise."

"That was the point," Cappie replied. "I had Beaver go shopping with Ashleigh to pick out the bed and doll and they brought it in and set it up this afternoon after they left the hospital."

"They did a great job," said Casey. "It's the perfect size and everything."

"I asked them to get the side rail to use for a little bit until she gets used to it," Cappie replied. "Did they get that?"

"Yeah, it's on the bed as we speak," Casey replied.

"Mommy read story," said Cadence.

"I have daddy on the phone and he wants to know if you like your new bed," Casey asked.

"Oh yeah!" Cadence replied happily.

"I heard that," said Cappie with a small laugh. "I'm glad everything worked out fine."

"Your princess couldn't be happier," Casey replied.

"Alright, well, I'll let you get her ready for bed," said Cappie. "And I'll see you tomorrow afternoon."

"Hopefully with some good news," said Casey.

"Of course," Cappie replied. "Love you."

"Love you too, bye," said Casey as she hung up the phone.

Casey then got Cadence into her pajamas and tucked her into the new bed. Cadence was half asleep when she finished the book Cappie had gotten for her.

"I hope you had a good birthday sweetheart," Casey whispered softly as she stroked a piece of hair out of Cadence's face.

"I did, thanks mommy," Cadence softly replied.

"Enjoy your new bed and have a good night," said Casey tucking her in one last time. "I'll see you in the morning."

"Wuv you mommy," Cadence replied.

"I love you too," Casey replied as she turned the light off and quietly walked out of the room.

* * *

Casey woke the next morning with movement in her bed.

"Hi mommy," said Cadence as she joined Casey under the covers.

"Cadence what are you doing here?" Casey asked looking at the clock. "It's only seven in the morning. And you shouldn't be getting out of bed and running around by yourself without mommy or daddy around. You don't want to get hurt do you?"

Cadence shook her head no.

"Sowwy mommy," she said beginning to get back out from underneath the covers.

"What are you doing?" Casey asked.

"Back to my bed," Cadence replied.

"No, don't worry about it," said Casey pulling her back down on the bed and snuggling Cadence close to her. "You'll remember the next time not to get up without mommy or daddy OK?"

Cadence shook her head yes.

The two of them laid in bed for another hour, neither of them really falling asleep but resting quietly. Eventually they got up, had breakfast and got ready for the day. Around eleven Casey loaded Cadence in the car and they were off to the doctor's office. They met up with Ashleigh and Beaver once they got in the parking lot.

"Good morning ladies," said Ashleigh as Casey helped Cadence out of her car seat.

"Hey Ash," said Casey. "Are you excited for the day?"

"Super excited," Ashleigh replied. "I can't wait to find out if we're having girls or boys."

"How about you Beave?" Casey asked as they walked into the doctor's office.

"Nervous," said Beaver taking a deep breath. "It's weird not knowing what to expect."

"I'm sure whatever you guys find out you'll be happy with," said Casey. "The whole thing is just a beautiful experience regardless of the sex of the baby, or babies I should say."

Ashleigh and Casey went to sign in as Beaver took Cadence to sit in the waiting room.

"So, what did you think of your new bed?" Beaver asked.

"I wuved it!" Cadence replied. "I'm big girl."

"Well I'm glad you liked it," said Beaver. "You know, I helped pick it out."

"Really?" Cadence asked.

"Yup," Beaver replied. "Since daddy wasn't able to leave the hospital he sent me and Aunt Ashleigh to pick it out for you. You have a pretty cool dad you know. He wanted to make sure his little princess had the best birthday possible."

"I miss my daddy," said Cadence softly.

"I know," said Beaver as he picked Cadence up on his lap. "But he'll be better and able to come home really soon. And then you two can run around and play tea party."

Beaver chuckled thinking about Cappie playing tea party with Cadence.

"What's funny?" Cadence asked.

"Nothing," said Beaver as Casey and Ashleigh joined them.

"So Case, are you going to find out the sex of the baby today too?" Ashleigh asked.

"Cappie and I went back and forth on that decision," said Casey. "But we decided that it would be best to know. So after the appointment I'll drive down to the hospital and tell him."

"If you want Beaver and I can take Cadence while you are seeing the doctor," said Ashleigh. "We were going to head down to the hospital later anyway. That would give you and Cap a little time together too so you can discuss the news you'll get today."

"That would be great if you guys don't mind," Casey replied.

"I don't think Cadence would mind an afternoon with her Uncle Beaver would ya?" Beaver asked. "We could get some lunch and maybe go to the playground."

"Oooo fun!" said Cadence.

"Well that's settled then," said Casey with a small laugh at Cadence's enthusiasm.

"Ashleigh Thompson," said the nurse calling Ashleigh.

"That's me," said Ashleigh standing up.

"Good luck guys," said Casey as Beaver handed Cadence to her. "I'll be eagerly waiting the news."

Ashleigh and Beaver went back to the exam room and went through the routine of taking her vital signs and weight. They each breathed a sigh of relief knowing they were all normal. A few minutes later the doctor came into the room.

"Ashleigh, it's so good to see you," said Dr. Snyder as she came in and shook Ashleigh and Beaver's hands. "How is everything going?"

"Everything is going well with the babies," said Ashleigh. "They've started to move around quite a bit and keep me up at night at times but I guess I don't mind."

"You'll probably get used to it eventually," Dr. Snyder replied. "And how are things with you dad?"

"Better now that I'm out of the hospital," said Beaver.

"Yeah, I heard about the restaurant fire, I'm really sorry to hear about that," said Dr. Snyder. "Looks like you are doing well though."

"Yeah, I still have a few breathing problems but other than that things are fine," Beaver replied.

"How about Mr. Cappington?" Dr. Snyder asked. "I was surprised to see that Casey still kept her appointment."

"He's getting physical therapy every day at a rehab facility," said Ashleigh. "We're hoping he'll be able to come home soon."

"Well that's good to hear," said Dr. Snyder. "Why don't you go ahead and lay down Ashleigh so we can start the ultrasound."

Ashleigh laid back and lifted up her shirt as Dr. Snyder got the machine ready. She squeezed the warm gel on her stomach and began the ultrasound.

"Alright, here is baby number one," she said pointing to the outline of the baby on the screen. "And here is baby number two," she continued as she moved the ultrasound around a little more.

"Wow, look how big they have gotten," said Beaver staring at the screen.

"I can tell," said Ashleigh looking down at her huge stomach.

"Let's check their heart beats," said Dr. Snyder as she flipped a switch on the machine to enable them to hear the heart beats.

"Boom, boom, boom, boom, boom," filled the room.

"The first baby's heart rate is perfect," said Dr. Snyder after listening to it for a moment.

"Boom, boom, boom, boom, boom."

"And the second baby's heart rate is just as perfect," she continued. "Everything looks really good you guys."

"That's great," said Beaver as he leaned down and gave Ashleigh a soft kiss.

"And I do have a clear shot of the sex of each baby if that is something you guys have decided if you want to know or not," said Dr. Snyder.

"Yes, we want to," said Ashleigh with anticipation.

"OK, baby number one is," Dr. Snyder hesitated. "A girl."

"A girl!" exclaimed Ashleigh.

"Awesome," added Beaver.

"And baby number two," she hesitated again as she placed the ultrasound head in the right place. "is a boy."

"A boy!" asked Ashleigh. "You mean we don't have identical twins?"

"Nope," Dr. Snyder replied. "Looks like you have fraternal twins."

"So we're going to have a boy AND a girl," said Beaver with a very large grin on his face. "That is so incredible. Ash, you'll have a girl to dress all girly and I'll have a boy to do manly stuff with like sports and wrestling."

"Something like that I guess," said Ashleigh with a small laugh.

"Wow, this is just so exciting," said Beaver blinking away the tears in his eyes. "It's like everything is like one hundred times more real now."

"This is real honey," said Ashleigh grabbing his hand. "We're going to be parents."

"And you two are going to be wonderful parents," said Dr. Snyder as she wiped the gel off of Ashleigh's stomach. "These are two very lucky babies."

"Thanks," said Ashleigh as she sat back up on the exam table.

"So unless there are no other issues in the time being I don't have to see you again until the end of November or even the beginning of December," said Dr. Snyder.

"OK," Ashleigh replied.

"Any idea when the babies may be born doc?" Beaver asked.

"Well her true due date is about February 6th," said Dr. Snyder. "But twins are usually not carried full term in most cases. I think it would be safe to say that the babies could come any time after the holidays."

"Wow, that doesn't seem too far away," said Beaver. "I guess I should get started on the nursery huh?"

"That would be a good idea," said Dr. Snyder. "And planning and buying things will be easier now that you guys know the sex of the babies."

"That's true," said Ashleigh as she stood up off of the exam table.

"As always, call me if you have any problems," said Dr. Snyder. "Otherwise, I will see you in a couple of months."

"Sounds good," said Ashleigh as Dr. Snyder left the room.

Ashleigh was about to follow her out when Beaver grabbed her arm to stop her.

"This is it Ash," said Beaver in all seriousness. "You and I are going to have a girl and a boy."

"Beave, you seem scared," said Ashleigh in a concerned voice.

"No, no, not at all," said Beaver. "I am incredibly excited. And I just wanted to let you know that there isn't any other person in the entire world I could imagine sharing this experience with than you. I just feel so overwhelmed with emotion right now. Just thinking about my two children running through the house and saying daddy and telling me that they love me…..sorry, I'm getting carried away."

Ashleigh lifted Beaver's chin so he could look her straight in the eye.

"I feel the exact same way Beave," she said with a smile.

Beaver smiled back as he dove forward and gave Ashleigh a passionate kiss.

"I love you," he said backing away.

"I love you too," Ashleigh replied.

Beaver took her hand and the two of them walked out to the secretary to schedule the next appointment. Once that was done they met with Cadence and Casey out in the waiting room.

"So?" said Casey eagerly.

"We are the proud mommy and daddy of a girl and a boy," said Ashleigh excitedly.

"OH MY GOSH! That's awesome Ash!" said Casey as the two of them hugged tightly and jumped up and down.

"What's going on?" Cadence asked looking up at Beaver.

Beaver bent down and picked Cadence up.

"Aunt Ashleigh and I just found out that we are going to have one girl baby and one boy baby," said Beaver.

"Two babies?" Cadence asked.

"Yes, two babies," Beaver replied.

"Mommy have two babies?" Cadence asked.

"No, your mom is only going to have one baby," said Beaver.

"Boy or girl?" Cadence asked.

"We don't know yet," Beaver replied. "Your mommy has an appointment next to find out."

"I'm so happy for you Beave," said Casey giving him a hug. "That is awesome that you'll get to experience having both a boy and a girl."

"Yeah, the best of both worlds," Beaver replied. "Who knows, maybe you've got a boy in there and can experience the same thing."

"Honestly Beave this baby is such a miracle that I really could care less if it's a boy or a girl, just as long as he or she is healthy," Casey stated.

"That is so true," Beaver replied.

"Casey Cappington," said the nurse.

"Well, I guess it's my turn now," said Casey.

"We can stay here until you're finished if you want," said Ashleigh.

"No, you guys should go," said Casey. "I have a feeling if I see you guys after the appointment I'll want to tell you the sex of the baby and Cappie is the first person I want to know."

"I understand," Ashleigh replied.

"You have fun with Ashleigh and Beaver," said Casey kissing Cadence on the cheek who was still in Beaver's arms. "I'll see you later at the hospital."

"Bye mommy," said Cadence.

"Bye sweetheart," said Casey as she gave the three of them a quick smile and followed the nurse into the back of the office.

* * *

About two hours later Casey nervously rode the elevator up to the sixth floor of the hospital. The drive down to see Cappie felt like it took ages to her. She was so excited that she finally made it. The elevator doors opened and she walked as quickly as she could down to Cappie's room. His door was closed. She put her hand on the doorknob and slowly opened it. Cappie was lying in bed taking a nap but the sound of the door opening startled him.

"Case!" he said excitedly as he sat up in the bed instantly remembering that Casey was there to give him the big news. "So? Is it a girl or a boy?"

* * *

_**A/N: Hey everyone! See, I told you I would get this chapter up a little quicker than I did the last one....haha. Hope you guys liked it! I haven't gotten any new reviewers or people who haven't reviewed in a while lately.....are people still out there reading this story? :0( I hope so because I really do like writing it as much as I hope there are people out there who like reading it :0) Please review and let me know you're still there! LoL! Thanks! Oh, and who is thinking girl? Or boy?**_


	131. Fire on the Mountain

FIRE ON THE MOUNTAIN

Casey walked over to Cappie's bed and sat down on the edge. He stared at her intently, his eyes wide with anticipation. Casey took his hand and smiled at him.

"You're killing me here Case," said Cappie smiling back at her.

"It's a boy," said Casey as tears filled her eyes.

Cappie was speechless. The smile on his face grew wider as he let go of Casey's hand and wrapped his arms around her tightly.

"We're going to have a boy," he whispered into her ear.

"Yeah, a boy," Casey said as she shook her head.

They both pulled away and smiled at each other again.

"I'm sorry, I'm just so happy," said Cappie letting out a small laugh. "I think secretly I wanted it to be a boy."

"You finally get your Cappie junior," said Casey also with a small laugh.

Cappie paused as if the realization just hit him.

"Wow, we are going to have a Cappie junior," said Cappie as he rubbed Casey's stomach. "I hope he's as handsome as his father."

"I'm sure he'll be just like his father in looks and personality," Casey replied. "Because his father is one hell of a guy."

"Thanks, I know," said Cappie as he leaned in and gave Casey a kiss on the lips. "So how did the rest of the appointment go?" Cappie asked as he backed away.

"She said everything else checked out fine," Casey replied. "She took some measurements of my stomach and I got to listen to the baby's heartbeat."

"I'm so bummed I had to miss it," said Cappie sadly.

"It's OK Cap," Casey stated. "I don't have my next one for another two months so I'm sure you will be just fine by then and able to go."

"What did Cadence think of the news?" Cappie asked.

"She doesn't know yet," Casey replied. "Ashleigh and Beaver took her out to lunch and to the playground. They said they would be stopping by here later and will bring her then."

"Speaking of Ashleigh and Beave," said Cappie. "Did they find out the sex of the babies?"

"Yup," Casey replied. "They are going to have a girl and a boy."

"That's awesome," said Cappie. "It'll be nice they'll have one of each."

"Yeah, both Beaver and Ash were pretty excited," Casey stated.

"And that works in our favor too," Cappie said with a smile. "Our little boy will have their boy as his best friend and their girl as his girlfriend."

"Oh gosh Cap, he's not even out of the womb yet and you're already picking out his best friend and girlfriend?" Casey asked with a laugh.

"Hey, never too soon to start thinking about that stuff," Cappie replied. "You just wait. Cadence will be in preschool here soon and come home and tell us all about her little boyfriend in her class."

"Gosh it feels like she's growing up so fast," said Casey. "Before you know it you'll be giving her away to get married."

"Whoa, that's a little too far ahead there," said Cappie with a laugh. "I don't even want to think about how much of an emotional wreck I'll be on that day."

"Look at us," said Casey with a giggle. "Here we are sitting here talking about our two year old's wedding. She's not even potty trained yet."

"I guess it just goes to show all the exciting things the two of us have to look forward to in the future Case," said Cappie. "I'm excited just thinking about it all."

"Me too," said Casey softly as her and Cappie locked stares.

Casey broke their stare and turned around so she could cuddle with him in the bed. Cappie wrapped his arms around her tightly as she laid her head on his chest.

"You know, we're going to have to get that baby name book out again here soon," said Cappie.

"Yeah, I have to get it back from Ashleigh," Casey replied. "I let her and Beaver borrow it to look up names for their babies."

"Hopefully picking a name this time will be easier than last time," said Cappie. "I guess all we have to look at is boy names that start with a 'C'."

"That's true," Casey replied as she snuggled in closer to Cappie's chest.

There was a pause between the two of them. Both of them seemed to be in their own moment thinking about the new little boy they will be welcoming into the world soon and all the new challenges, responsibilities and exciting times that will come along with it.

"Hey, did the doctor say anything about when you might be due?" Cappie asked breaking the silence.

"Yeah, February 23rd is my due date based on the measurements and everything," Casey replied. "But she did say though that since Cadence was a couple of days early this baby would most likely be a few days early too but she couldn't say for sure or not."

"It seems like such a long wait from now," said Cappie. "But I'm sure it will go by quickly."

"Yeah," Casey sighed.

The two of them laid there again in silence until Cappie heard a more rhythmic breathing coming from Casey as she laid on his chest. She had fallen asleep. Cappie soon succumbed to sleep also still holding Casey as tightly as he could.

About an hour later Linda interrupted the two of them in a deep sleep as it was time for Cappie to go to the gym for his physical therapy session. Casey went down to the gym too and watched as Cappie began his exercises. Towards the middle of the session Linda got out the walker and tried walking with Cappie again. This time he made it around twenty feet before he became too fatigued and had to sit down. Casey was so proud of him though and she knew Cappie was proud of himself also for making progress even if it was slower than he would have liked it to be.

Cappie was finishing up his last few exercises when Ashleigh and Beaver walked into the gym with Cadence.

"Daddy!" she exclaimed as she ran up to him.

"Hey princess," said Cappie as he lifted her up in his wheelchair. "How have you been?"

"Good, I play at park," Cadence replied.

"Did you have fun?" Cappie asked.

"Yup," Cadence replied.

"Ash, Beave, I heard the good news," said Cappie directing his attention to them. "Congratulations."

"Thanks," Ashleigh replied. "How did things go for you guys?"

Cappie and Casey looked at each other and smiled.

"We," Casey paused. "Are going to have a boy."

"Oh my gosh that's so wonderful," said Ashleigh giving Casey a hug. "I am so happy for you two."

"Did you hear that Cadence?" Cappie asked looking into her eyes. "Mommy is going to have a boy. You're going to have a baby brother."

"Bro-dur?" Cadence asked.

"Yeah, you're going to be a big sister," said Casey walking over to Cadence and Cappie.

"What's his name?" Cadence asked.

"Well, mommy and I don't know yet," Cappie replied. "We have to think about it."

"I like Bob," said Cadence with a giggle.

"Bob?" Casey asked also with a giggle. "That's a silly name Cadence."

"Besides," added Cappie. "We want the baby to have a name that starts with a 'C' just like the rest of us."

"Oh," Cadence sighed.

"What about Caden?" Beaver asked. "That's a boy's name and it fits pretty well, Cadence and Caden."

"Nah, I think it's a little too close to Cadence," Casey replied. "I would hate to call one of their names and have both of them come running because they weren't sure which one I was calling for. But I'm sure we'll come up with something eventually. It's you two that have more work, coming up with two names and all."

"We have it narrowed down to a few already," Ashleigh replied. "It's just a matter of making the final decision."

"I'm sure whatever you guys pick will be great," said Cappie smiling at them.

"Thanks," Ashleigh replied.

"Why don't we all go down to the cafeteria and grab a snack?" Casey asked.

"Yay!" Cadence exclaimed.

"Of course you would never pass up a snack," said Cappie as he kissed Cadence's cheek and everyone made their way down to the cafeteria.

* * *

Exactly a week and a half later Cappie was finally ready to come home from the hospital. Casey did her best for make everything perfect for Cappie's arrival. Beaver went to go pick up Cappie while Ashleigh, Casey and Cadence decorated the house with 'Welcome Home' signs and made several food items. About a half an hour prior to Cappie's arrival all of the guests arrived. Casey's parents were first, followed by Rusty and Jordan, Calvin and Heath, and Evan and Rebecca.

"Can I help you with anything?" Rebecca asked Casey as she walked into the kitchen.

"No, I think I have everything just about finished," Casey replied as she pulled some meatballs out of the oven.

"My, you and Ashleigh are really popping out here," said Rebecca with a small laugh as she eyed Casey's stomach. "Do you know if it's a boy or a girl yet?"

"It's a boy," Casey replied with a smile.

"Aw, congrats Case," Rebecca replied.

"Thanks," Casey replied. "So how are things going with you and Evan?"

"Couldn't be better," Rebecca replied. "I actually have some news of my own."

Casey spun around quickly and looked at Rebecca.

"No way!" she said excitedly.

"Now, now, let's not jump to conclusions right away," said Rebecca with a small laugh. "I am not pregnant but I can tell you that Evan and I are actively trying to GET pregnant."

"That's wonderful Bex," said Casey. "Having a child is such a beautiful thing. It certainly changes your lives."

"Yeah, look what it did for yours," said Rebecca looking around the kitchen.

"Mommy!" said Cadence running over to her. "When daddy here?"

"Pretty soon sweetheart," Casey replied. "Just keep looking out the window and let us know when you see him."

"OK," said Cadence as she ran back to the front window.

"She's getting so big Case," said Evan as he joined them in the kitchen. "I can't believe she's two already. Seems just like yesterday I found out you were pregnant."

"Yeah, who would have thought this is where Cappie and I would be right now?" Casey asked as she rubbed her stomach.

"I'm sure you wouldn't trade any of it for the world," said Evan.

"I wouldn't," Casey replied. "And Rebecca told me that you guys are trying to have a little bundle of joy yourselves. I hope a baby can bring you guys as much happiness as it has for Cappie and I."

"I'm sure—" Evan began.

"MOMMY! MOMMY! HE'S HERE!" Cadence yelled interrupting him as she came running back into the kitchen.

"Show time!" said Casey as she followed Cadence to the front door.

Beaver had just parked the car when Casey and Cadence walked up to it.

"Um Case, there are a few more people here than I expected," said Cappie as he opened the car door.

"Did you really think I would let you come home without a welcome home party?" Casey asked.

"Guess not," said Cappie with a laugh.

"Daddy, come inside!" said Cadence grabbing Cappie's hand.

He slowly got out of the car and made his way to the front door pulled by his daughter. Even though Cappie was well enough to come home and walk without a walker, he still wasn't one hundred percent. He still fatigued easily when he walked longer distances and had some shortness of breath due to all the breathing difficulties he had after the fire.

"Welcome home man," said Evan giving Cappie a high five as they walked into the house.

"It's a long time coming," said Cappie with a deep breath. "But I'm certainly happy to be here."

"Look daddy!" exclaimed Cadence as they walked into the living room so Cappie could see all the decorations and signs.

"Did you help decorate this for me?" Cappie asked.

"Yup!" Cadence said shaking her head.

"Come on dear," said Mrs. Cartwright taking Cadence's hand. "Let's let daddy sit down and visit with some of his friends for a little bit."

Cappie smiled as he watched Mrs. Cartwright take Cadence into the kitchen. Casey took his hand and they walked over to the couch and sat down.

"Hey Cap!" said Heath on the other side of the couch. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm feeling alright," Cappie replied. "I just can't believe how good it feels to be home. It feels like it's been forever since I've sat on this couch."

"We were so worried when we heard about the fire and everything," said Calvin. "I'm sorry we didn't make it out to see you at the hospital. With Heath's rotations and my schedule we just couldn't get it to work."

"It's alright man," Cappie replied. "I had plenty of company. Casey and Cadence were there just about every day and her parents and Ash and Beave would stop in often too. I'm glad you guys are here now though."

"Yeah, I did some rescheduling of things so I could be here," said Heath. "It's always nice getting together with old friends for a special occasion."

"So how are things going with you guys?" Casey asked.

"Oh nothing really new," Calvin replied. "We've both been working a lot. Oh, we did get a dog a few weeks ago."

"You did? What kind?" Cappie asked.

"A Rottweiler," Heath replied with a sigh.

"Uh oh, I sense Heath is not a big fan of the dog," said Casey with a small laugh.

"It's not really that," Heath replied. "I would have liked to have a dog that was a little smaller that's all. He's hard to control at times. But Calvin wanted a big dog so that's what we got."

"What's his name?" Cappie asked.

"Butch," Calvin replied. "And don't let Heath fool you, he is really a big baby at heart."

"You know, I'm surprised we haven't talked about getting a dog or a pet," Cappie said turning to Casey.

"I'm not sure Cap," Casey hesitated. "With the new baby and everything I'm not sure if it's really the right time."

"She's right," said Heath. "Having a dog at first is like having a child. But once Butch was potty trained and learned a few basic commands he's better now."

"I always wanted a dog," said Cappie giving Casey a pouty lip.

"We'll talk about it later," said Casey playfully nudging him. "I'm going to get something to eat. Do you want anything?"

"As long as you cooked it, I'll take it," said Cappie. "It will be good to finally eat something other than hospital food."

Casey got up and went into the kitchen. She was replaced on the couch by Rebecca.

"You sure gave us all a scare there Cap," she said patting him on the leg.

"My pleasure," said Cappie sarcastically as he rolled his eyes at Rebecca.

Rebecca rolled her eyes back at him as Cappie smiled at her.

"How are things with you?" Cappie asked.

"They're good," Rebecca replied. "Just working and having lots of sex."

"OK…..too much information," said Cappie cutting Rebecca off before she could continue.

"Calm down silly," said Rebecca turning to look at him. "I'm having lots of sex because Evan and I are trying to have a baby."

"Really?" Cappie asked in a surprised tone.

"What? Why are you surprised by that?" Rebecca asked.

"I don't know," Cappie replied. "I guess I just thought kids weren't something you were really interested in having. Or that you two were even ready to have kids yet."

"Well, look at you and Casey and Ashleigh and Beaver," said Rebecca. "You guys are all having kids. Why is it weird for us to have one?"

"You shouldn't be having a baby just because we are Bex," said Cappie.

Cappie could tell Rebecca wasn't telling him the whole truth. As much as he hated to admit it he always knew when Rebecca was lying to him. And he was probably one of the only people in the world who would call her out on it. He knew she wasn't ready for kids which made this piece of information particularly interesting to him. Rebecca sighed next to him. He could tell there was more on her mind but Casey came up to them interrupting before he could ask anything.

"Here you go honey," she said handing him a plate of food.

"Well, good talking with you Cap," said Rebecca quickly standing up. "Enjoy your food."

Casey noticed Cappie staring at Rebecca oddly as she walked away.

"What was that all about?" she asked sitting back down next to him and taking a drink of her water.

"I'm not really sure," Cappie replied. "Just weird how she was talking about having another baby."

"I know! Isn't it great!" Casey exclaimed.

Cappie now looked at her with a concerned look.

"OK, maybe not so great?" Casey asked reading his expression.

"I don't know, I'll talk to them later though," Cappie replied as he took a bite of the meatballs Casey had put on his plate.

Cappie and Casey sat and finished their plates of food over the next half an hour. When Casey got up to go put their plates in the kitchen Cappie noticed Rusty walking next to the couch.

"Rusty!" he exclaimed. "I've been here like an hour and you haven't even said hi?"

"Sorry Cap," said Rusty as he sat down next to him. "I was caught up talking with Beaver about the future plans with the restaurant."

"Future plans?" Cappie asked. "I didn't even know there were any future plans."

"Well there's not, not really," said Rusty. "He's waiting for the insurance to go through and see if the place is salvageable or not."

"Man, it's kind of depressing thinking about all the hard work we put into that thing to have it burnt to a crisp in a matter of minutes," said Cappie.

"I'm sure you guys will get it back up and running," Rusty stated. "Beaver said there are already a lot of customers willing to pitch in and help with the renovation so things can get done quicker. It's nice to know there are people out there who want the restaurant to come back. That's got to make you feel pretty good."

"It does," said Cappie. "I just feel so out of the loop. I hadn't even thought about the status of the restaurant."

"You were in the hospital though," said Rusty. "No one could have expected you to work on those kinds of things while in there."

"I just hope Beaver hasn't lost faith in me," said Cappie with a sigh.

"Not at all," Rusty replied. "He was just saying how he was going to give you a little more time to recover and then he can't wait to get you back into the things and working again."

"That's great," said Cappie and then he paused. "So, how are things going with you? Things still going well with Jordan?"

"Couldn't be better," Rusty replied with a smile. "It's nice now that we're living together this semester. Dale was heartbroken at first of course but he knows it's for the best."

"Dale, wow, it's been so long since I've heard anything from him," said Cappie. "What is he up to?"

"Well we're both in the same graduate program for engineering and polymer science so we still see each other pretty much every day," Rusty replied. "It seems like the coursework in grad school is a little less competitive than it was in undergrad. It's been nice because I feel like my relationship with Dale is better knowing that we're not in competition all of the time."

"That's good," said Cappie. "So does Daley have a lady friend in his life?"

"Yes, actually he does," Rusty replied. "Her name is Mary and they've been together for about a year or so now. But of course he would never think about living with her before marriage or anything. So while I'm living in sin he's in his own apartment down the hall."

"I miss Dale," said Cappie. "Maybe I'll have to call him sometime and catch up."

"I'm sure he would like it," Rusty replied.

"So any wedding plans coming along at all?" Cappie asked.

"I think Jordan and I decided we want to get married around this time next year," Rusty replied. "It would just work out best with everything that's going on and babies being born and everything. Plus we've decided that we're not going to make it a big event or anything."

"It's supposed to be a big event Russ," said Cappie. "It's your wedding day. The day you're going to marry the love of your life."

"I mean big as far as people there I guess," Rusty replied. "We're contemplating on whether we're going to go elope somewhere with just a few close friends and family or maybe do something at a small chapel in Ohio, also with just a few friends and family."

"I think either way would be just fine as long as your include the people necessary," Cappie replied. "You and Jordan don't really seem like the type of people who would be all about the fancy wedding with hundreds of guests."

"Exactly," Rusty replied. "We'll keep talking about it and let everyone know once we get a better idea."

"Well you can certainly count us in," said Cappie. "Your sister and I wouldn't miss it for the world."

"Thanks Cap," said Rusty smiling at him.

A few hours later the guests began to leave the party. Rebecca and Evan were the only ones left later in the evening because they were staying at Casey and Cappie's house for the night. Casey and Rebecca were putting Cadence to bed as Evan and Cappie flipped through television stations in the living room.

"Being in the hospital really made me realize how much I don't watch TV," said Cappie as he changed the television from station to station. "I must say though, I did come quite accustomed to the court shows they show during the day. It's funny to laugh at all the stupid things people actually sue others for."

"And to think I was almost going to be a lawyer," said Evan with a small chuckle.

"Yeah but you're happy with what you're doing now aren't you?" Cappie asked.

"Of course," Evan replied. "I love being a business man. I'm hoping to get another promotion here in the next couple of months. Pretty soon maybe I'll own the company."

"That would be quite an accomplishment," said Cappie.

There was a pause between them as Cappie finally turned the television off.

"So Rebecca tells me that you two have babies on the brain," said Cappie turning to look at Evan.

"Isn't it great?" said Evan with a smile. "I can't wait to be a father. Seeing you with Cadence just gets me more excited about having a child of my own."

"Wow Ev, I had no idea how important this was to you," said Cappie. "Last time I talked to you guys you were just concerned with being happy newlyweds."

"I was," said Evan. "But with everything that has happened with you it just kind of made me realize that life is short and I want to live it as fulfilled as possible."

"That's true," said Cappie. "But that doesn't mean you have to just all of a sudden have a kid because of what Casey and I are going through."

"I understand Cap. But I know deep down that it's time for us. Rebecca and I are ready," Evan replied.

"Are you sure Bex is ready?" Cappie asked trying to sound as casual with the question as he could.

"What is that supposed to mean?" Evan asked changing to a more cold tone of voice.

"Nothing, I just—"

"Hey guys, did you find anything on TV?" Rebecca interrupted as her and Casey joined the two boys in the living room.

"No," Cappie replied, annoyed that their conversation got interrupted.

"We could watch a movie instead," said Casey walking over to their DVD rack.

"Actually I'm kind of tired from everything today and Rebecca and I have to be up fairly early in the morning to leave so I think we'll just head to bed now," said Evan.

"Are you sure?" Cappie asked. "It's only nine-thirty."

"Yeah, I'm sure," Evan replied as he stood up off the couch. "Are you coming too honey?"

"I should," Rebecca said with a sigh. "I don't get to see you guys as much though and would rather stay up and talk."

"Why don't we all get up early and go to breakfast?" Cappie asked. "That will give us some more time to talk if you two want to go to bed now."

"Great idea," said Evan. "We'll see you guys in the morning."

"Sounds good," said Casey as she watched Evan and Rebecca walk down the hallway and upstairs to the guest room.

Casey made her way into the kitchen to clean up a few last things from the party. Cappie stood up and walked into the kitchen to be with her.

"Can I get you anything?" Casey asked.

"Nah," Cappie replied smiling at her.

"Why are you smiling at me?" Casey asked smiling back at Cappie.

"Because you are wonderful and I love you more than anything in this entire world," said Cappie coming up next to Casey and wrapping his arms around her waist.

"Do you realize how long it's been since you've been able to stand up and wrap your arms around me like this?" Casey asked, almost having tears form in her eyes.

"Too long," said Cappie as he leaned down and kissed her softly on the lips.

Casey smiled again as they backed away.

"It's a really nice night out," she said. "Do you want to sit out on the swing for a little bit?"

"I would love some fresh air," Cappie replied as he took Casey's hand and the two of them walked out onto the deck.

Cappie sat down on the swing first. Casey then sat next to him and leaned against his chest as Cappie wrapped his arms around her tightly.

"It feels so good to be home," he whispered to her as he kissed her forehead.

"It feels so good to have you home," Casey replied.

"Thanks for my welcoming party," said Cappie as he began to rock the swing back and forth. "It was really good to see our friends and how everyone was happy that I was alive and well."

"We have a lot of great friends that care about us," Casey replied. "And we care just as much about them."

"Yeah, we care so much I have a feeling we're going to be having some sort of meeting with Rebecca and Evan tomorrow before they leave," said Cappie.

"Don't I know that," said Casey with a sigh.

"Wait, do you know something that I don't know?" Cappie asked.

"I don't know. Do you know something I don't know?" Casey asked.

"I'm pretty sure we both know the same thing," said Cappie with a small laugh. "Evan wants to have a baby and Rebecca doesn't."

"Did Evan tell you that?" Casey asked.

"Evan told me how much he can't wait to have a kid," Cappie replied. "Rebecca just told me that they are trying. She didn't really say she didn't want one but I can read her pretty well. I could tell she wasn't all into it."

"Oh," was all Casey said.

"Um, I think there is something you know that I don't know," said Cappie turning her to look at him.

"Just that Rebecca never stopped her birth control," Casey replied. "She told me while we were putting Cadence to bed that she's been on it the entire time just making Evan think like having a baby is just not meant to be for them at the moment."

"Damn," said Cappie with a sigh. "Why does she have to go and do this? Why can't she just tell him that she's not ready to have a baby right now?"

"Do you honestly think Rebecca will ever be ready to have a baby?" Casey asked.

"Who knows," said Cappie. "But her lying to him like this can't be good for their marriage."

"And the fact that the two of us are now kind of stuck in the middle of it doesn't help," said Casey as she leaned her head back down against Cappie's chest.

"I just hope that the two of them can get on the same page when it comes to starting a family," said Cappie.

"You never know though," said Casey shrugging her shoulders. "It's not like the two of us were on the same page when it happened to us."

"Yeah, but given the circumstances we both got on the same page and have been there ever since," Cappie replied.

"We're different than the two of them though," said Casey. "I think Rebecca suddenly getting pregnant would almost destroy them rather than bring them closer like it was for us."

Cappie took a big deep breath in and out.

"I really hope that doesn't happen but I don't really want to talk about it anymore," he said. "What goes on in their lives is up to them. I want to concentrate on our lives and getting back to normal as soon as we can."

"I couldn't agree more," Casey replied. "I brought some pillows and blankets down for you to set up on the couch since you can't do the steps quite yet."

"And do I get the pleasure of you joining me to sleep on the couch?" Cappie asked as Casey sat up straight.

"Do you have any idea how lonely I have been sleeping by myself at night?" she asked. "I wouldn't miss cuddling with you on your first night home for anything."

"I was hoping you would say that," said Cappie as he pulled Casey close to him for a passionate kiss. "I love you," he added backing away.

"I love you too," said Casey standing up.

The two lovebirds made their way inside and cuddled right up together on the couch. However, each of them was oblivious to the fact that Evan was too hot and having a hard time falling asleep upstairs. He had opened the window to the guest room to get some cooler air………and he heard every bit of the conversation the two of them had just had on the back deck.

* * *

_**A/N: Thanks so much for the reviews last chapter everyone! Glad to know you're still out there reading this, they really made my day :0) I think a lot of you are excited that Cappie and Casey are having a boy because that's what a lot of you predicted. Cappie needs his Cappie Junior right? LoL! I hope everyone liked how there was a little update with the rest of the characters in the story in this chapter. What do you guys think is going to happen with the Evan and Rebecca drama? Hope you liked the new chapter!**_


	132. Friends in Low Places

FRIENDS IN LOW PLACES

The next morning Cappie opened his eyes and stretched his arms high in the air. He knew morning had come by the sunlight coming through the window but knew it couldn't be before nine am because he hadn't heard anything from Cadence yet. He glanced at the clock and saw that it was seven and turned on his side to face Casey. He loved to watch her sleep. Normally she slept on her back with her arms tucked underneath the covers. But when she is pregnant she sleeps on her side, probably because it's more comfortable for her. He brushed a strand of hair out of her face and listened as she let out a small sigh but didn't wake up. A part of him wanted to wake her up so they could enjoy some time for just the two of them before Cadence, Evan and Rebecca got up. But he also knew she needed her rest for both her and the baby she was carrying. Thinking about the baby made him bring his gaze down towards her stomach. Her shirt had come up revealing a bit of the bump he had come to know and love.

Cappie was about to reach out and rub the bump when he heard a noise at the bottom of the stairs. He noticed that it startled Casey but she still didn't wake up. He covered her up with the blanket and made his way to the foyer where the noise was coming from.

"Evan?" he whispered as he saw Evan sitting on the bottom of the steps and putting his shoes on.

"Oh Cap I'm sorry if I woke you up," said Evan as he tied his shoe.

"No, I was already up," Cappie replied. "But you're certainly up early. What are you doing?"

"I'm going for a run," said Evan as he stood up and began walking towards the front door.

"You?" said Cappie with a small laugh. "You don't run."

Evan just looked at Cappie and rolled his eyes.

"OK fine, let me come with you at least," said Cappie reaching for his shoes.

"You don't run either," said Evan with a chuckle. "You're probably even less than a runner than I am."

"So we can look like idiots together then I guess," said Cappie as he sat down to put his shoes on.

"Cap, you just got home from the hospital," said Evan. "You shouldn't be going for a run."

"OK, we'll go for a walk then," said Cappie.

He looked at Evan hesitate.

"Oh come on, don't tell me you were actually going to run anyway," said Cappie. "And besides, I told my physical therapist I would go for at least one walk a day. Might as well get it out of the way early."

"I can tell you're just not letting me go alone are you?" Evan asked putting his hands on his hips.

"Nope," Cappie looked up at him with a smirk. "You don't look like you should be alone right now anyway."

"I've just got a lot on my mind right now," said Evan as he opened the front door and walked out.

"Well a walk is the perfect time for you to tell me all your problems," said Cappie following Evan out the door.

"If I didn't know any better I would think you already know," said Evan with a little bitterness in his voice.

Cappie stopped.

"What is that supposed to mean?" he asked.

"Never mind," said Evan with a deep breath. "Let's just keep walking."

Cappie hesitated at first but realized if he didn't start walking soon Evan would be a block away from him before he knew it. He was finally able to catch up with him and the two of them walked around the block in silence.

Cappie searched his brain for the next few hundred feet they walked for something to break the silence. He didn't want to ask Evan about the things on his mind obviously because it seemed to be a sensitive subject. He thought about pulling some small talk and mentioning how nice the weather was but that didn't seem very interesting. He was about to start talking about Cadence, whom he could talk about for hours, before Evan finally spoke.

"I think I'm going to file for divorce from Rebecca," he said.

"Whoa, what?" Cappie asked in shock.

"Oh come on Cap, don't play stupid with me," said Evan. "You know that Rebecca is currently lying to me about wanting a baby. Why would I stay with someone who is going to lie to me?"

"Wait, how do you know Rebecca is lying to you?" Cappie asked.

"I had a window open in my room last night. I heard everything you and Casey said on the back deck," he replied with a sigh.

"Oh," was all Cappie could say.

"I should have known something would happen like this," said Evan raising his voice a little bit. "Rebecca is just that kind of girl. Why did I ever think I could trust her?"

"Because you love her," Cappie stated. "You can't ever forget that."

"I know," Evan replied. "I do still love her. That's what makes this so hard."

"Ev, it really doesn't have to be like this," said Cappie. "I think you're jumping the gun talking this divorce stuff."

"What if Casey lied to you Cap?" Evan asked. "You can't tell me you wouldn't feel betrayed and hurt like I do right now."

"Well yeah, I understand that," Cappie replied. "But you also have to take your own words to heart. You said this is how you feel _right now_. Maybe once you talk to Rebecca and figure things out you'll feel differently."

"I was up pretty much all night thinking about this Cap, I don't think I'm going to change my mind just by talking to her," said Evan.

"I think you're overreacting about this," said Cappie. "Maybe she has a reason she's doing what she's doing. Think about when she left before the wedding. She had a good reason for doing what she did. She was scared. Maybe she's scared to have a baby right now."

"There's nothing to be scared about," said Evan. "I would be there for her the entire way through everything. She would get whatever she needed whenever she wanted it."

"I'm sure she knew the same thing before you two got married," said Cappie. "But she still ran."

"Why do you keep defending her Cap?" said Evan with a little bitterness in his voice again.

"I'm not trying to defend her Evan," said Cappie. "All I'm doing is trying to get you to see that there could be another side to this situation. I don't want to see you give up on your marriage so easily. Marriage is supposed to be forever."

"Aw, don't you just sound like an after school special," said Evan looking at Cappie and rolling his eyes. "You've become such a softie once you married Casey and had Cadence."

"And there is something wrong with that?" Cappie asked.

"No," Evan replied. "I just think the old Cappie would have sided with me and not be standing here trying to get me to see Rebecca's point of view."

"I guess I just feel that everyone should have their own say in the situation before going and running and getting a divorce. You at least can give her that."

Evan didn't reply and just continued to walk. The two of them eventually came to an open field and Evan sat down in the grass and let out a large sigh.

"I'm sorry if I pissed you off," said Cappie as he sat down near Evan. "I would just hate to see you and Rebecca end things. I've always thought of you two are perfect for each other."

"Honestly, I would hate for things to end too," said Evan as he began to pick at the grass around him.

"So then why not try to work things out?" Cappie asked.

"Because I'm not sure if I can forgive her for lying to me," Evan replied.

"Oh come on," said Cappie in a frustrated tone. "It's not like she cheated on you Ev. Like I said, I still think she's just scared and that's why she's doing this."

Evan took a deep breath and didn't reply to Cappie. He just looked up at the sky. It was at that point he realized there was no point in trying to reason with Cappie anymore. Every time he tried to tell him what he thought Cappie just jumped on the Rebecca bandwagon and defended her actions. In Evan's eyes Rebecca's actions are inexcusable. The two of them are married. They are supposed to be a unit, working together and compromising and talking about things. But Rebecca is just taking things upon herself and not even letting him know how she is feeling. At the same time though, he was about to do the same thing to her. He wasn't even going to try to talk about things with her and now he realized that he probably needed to do that to be the husband and wife working together than he wanted them to be. He hated admitting that maybe Cappie was right in this whole thing. Maybe Rebecca did have a reason for doing what she is doing.

Cappie noticed Evan had stopped talking abruptly and knew he had pushed the situation a little too far. He just hoped that he was able to get through a little bit to Evan.

"So," Cappie hesitated. "What are you going to do now?"

"Good question," Evan replied. "I know I have to talk with Rebecca about this but I'm not sure your house is the best place to bring this up."

"You could talk with her on the drive home," Cappie suggested.

"That may be even worse," Evan sighed. "But I can't pretend over the next several hours that everything is fine and nothing is bothering me."

"Yeah, you're not the best at hiding your emotions," said Cappie with a small chuckle.

"Thanks," said Evan sarcastically rolling his eyes at Cappie.

"Ev, I don't really care when and where you have the conversation with Rebecca, I'm just glad that you are going to talk with her about this," said Cappie.

"Now I didn't say we were going to work this out or anything," said Evan. "I'm just going to give her a chance to tell me her side of the story I guess."

"That's all I wanted," Cappie replied.

There was a brief silence between the two of them before Evan let out a small chuckle.

"What was that for?" Cappie asked.

"I just find this situation funny I guess," Evan replied. "When I woke up this morning I was dead set in going home and getting a divorce going as soon as possible. But of course you come along and get your nose in my business and make me see the more rational side of things."

"If you ask me, that's how it's always been between the two of us," Cappie stated. "It all started at summer camp when David Morris stole your little black book of girls' numbers."

"Ha," Evan laughed. "And I was set to beat his ass later that night but instead you set me up on a date with Rachel Gill, the hottest girl at camp that summer."

"So hot," Cappie sighed looking up at the sky. "I was jealous as hell but it got you to realize that having the hottest chic at camp on your arm was better than all those other numbers. And it prevented you from getting beat up."

"Oh please," said Evan. "I would have taken him out with one punch. There's no way he was going to beat me up."

"You just keep thinking that," said Cappie with a laugh. "But I'm pretty sure you would have needed my help to take him down that night and save your own precious, blemish-free face."

Evan didn't respond right away. There was no arguing with Cappie when it came to getting in fights. Cappie got into a lot at camp and he always won. The fight with David Morris would have been Evan's first fight, and of course he never made it. And Cappie was probably right; he would have stepped in and helped Evan beat the crap out of the kid and probably took the fall too if they got in trouble. Cappie always had his back when it came to things like that.

"I wonder whatever happened to Rachel," Evan sighed as he looked at the sky.

"From what I heard she got involved with some drugs, got cleaned up and is now one of the head counselors there," Cappie replied.

"Damn, I wonder if she's still smoking hot," said Evan.

"Who knows, maybe one day the two of us will have to take a road trip out there and reminisce about old times," said Cappie. "And maybe to see if she's still smoking hot."

Both boys smiled at each other.

"I wonder if that outhouse you lost your virginity in is still there," Evan said with a laugh.

"First of all, it was a shed, not some nasty outhouse people piss in," said Cappie defending himself. "And secondly, losing my virginity in that thing won me five hundred bucks because I had sex before you."

"What was I thinking making that bet against you?" Evan laughed. "We all knew counselor Jane had a huge crush on you and would have spread her legs the minute you asked her to."

"Hey now, there were no terms in the bet as to who I had the sex with," Cappie now laughed. "Plus, she was experienced and taught me a few things."

"Oh gross," said Evan with a cringe.

"Wanna make another bet you'll lose?" Cappie asked.

"And what is this?" Evan asked looking at Cappie.

"Five hundred bucks says you and Rebecca work things out and you don't get a divorce," said Cappie reaching his hand out to Evan.

"Cap, I'm not placing a bet on my marriage," said Evan standing up off the ground. "But if we did bet, it's one that I will gladly lose."

"I'll be waiting for my check in the mail then," Cappie said putting his arm down smiling up at Evan.

"You wish," said Evan as he turned around and began to walk back towards the house. "We didn't even shake on it."

Evan was back on the sidewalk before he heard Cappie behind him.

"Uh, Ev?" he said.

Evan turned around to find Cappie still sitting on the ground. He walked back over to him.

"I guess I should have thought about having the strength to get back up before sitting all the way down on the ground huh?" said Cappie with a laugh.

Now Evan laughed. "You seriously can't get up?"

Cappie shook his head no and reached his hand out for Evan. Evan just looked at him and hesitated with an evil smile on his face.

"Don't even think about it," said Cappie. "As a friend you have to help my ass up."

"And what if I don't?" Evan asked.

"Well, I'm pretty sure you'll have my hormonal, pregnant wife to deal with when you get back to the house alone without me," said Cappie. "And that is not something you want to mess with."

"Good point," said Evan taking Cappie's hand to pull him up.

But he barely had to help Cappie up. Cappie did most of the work himself. Evan looked at him strangely as Cappie was back on his feet. It was now Cappie's turn to give an evil grin.

"Bet's on," said Cappie shaking Evan's hand before letting go of it.

"You little shit," said Evan as Cappie began to walk towards the sidewalk, realizing he really didn't need any help standing up.

"Like I said, I'll be waiting for my check in the mail," Cappie said as he turned and smiled at Evan.

Evan smiled back as he ran up to Cappie and ran his knuckles through his long hair messing it all up. It was times like this that really made him realize what a great friend Cappie was to him. There's no one else who could calm him down and make him laugh at the same time like Cappie could. Their friendship sure had its ups and downs but as long as the two of them were in a good place now, that was all that mattered. Now it was time for him to face Rebecca.

* * *

The boys got back to the house to find Casey in the kitchen fixing something on the stove and Cadence eating a banana in her highchair.

"Thanks for telling me that you left," said Casey as Cappie walked over to the refrigerator and got out two bottles of water for him and Evan.

"Sorry," said Cappie throwing one of the bottles to Evan and walking over to Casey. "We were both up early and decided to get some fresh air."

"Well I was worried waking up without you there," said Casey. "Especially since you just got home from the hospital. I ran into all the rooms expecting to find you on the floor or something."

"Now you have to have a little more faith in me," said Cappie as he came up from behind Casey and wrapped his arms around her. "I'm a big boy, I can take care of myself."

"I know you can," said Casey as Cappie kissed her on the cheek. "But I can't help but love you and worry about you."

"And I love you too," said Cappie as he let go of her and sat down at the kitchen table.

"Have you heard anything from Rebecca at all?" Evan asked who was also sitting at the table.

"She was still sound asleep when I looked in the guest room," said Casey. "Once I saw that you were gone too I assumed you two were out doing something together."

"Yeah, just getting that morning run in," said Evan stretching his arms in the air.

Casey looked at him and rolled her eyes. "You don't run Evan," she said. "And I know for a fact Cappie doesn't run unless he absolutely has to."

"OK so we walked," said Evan. "Is there a crime for going for a walk with your best friend?"

"It's a little suspicious that you two were up so early going for this so-called walk," said Casey joining them at the table. "But if that is what you two did then I will take your word for it."

"Mommy I hungry," said Cadence as she finished her banana.

"I have your pancake cooking right now," said Casey. "It will be done in just a little bit."

"I thought we were going to go out for breakfast?" Evan asked.

"We still can," Casey replied. "But by the time everyone gets ready and we actually get somewhere it will probably be more like brunch and there is no way Cadence would wait that long to eat. So I had to make her something."

"I should probably go and check on Rebecca," said Evan taking one last swig of his water.

Evan and Cappie made brief eye contact as Evan stood up and pushed his chair in.

"Be back in a bit," he said as he walked towards the stairs.

He slowly walked up the stairs taking one step at a time. He debated in his head as to if he should just have the conversation with Rebecca right now and get it over with or wait so it didn't ruin the rest of their day. By the time he got to the guest room door he still didn't know what he wanted to do. He just decided to go with the flow and take the conversation wherever it went when he got into the room. He opened the door quietly and shut it behind him. Rebecca was still in bed curled up in the blankets.

He climbed into the bed and laid down next to her. He thought that the movement of the bed would wake her up but she continued to sleep. He took a couple of minutes and just stared at her. He let a small smile come over his face thinking about how much he did love her. There wasn't anyone in the world that understood him quite like she did. He didn't know if it was because of their family backgrounds or just their personalities but the two of them did have something special.

"Bex," he finally said softly trying to wake her up.

She stirred a little but didn't wake up.

"Rebecca, it's time to wake up," he whispered as he rubbed his hand on the top of her arm.

His touch this time woke her up. She looked at him through squinted eyes, trying to adjust to the light.

"You're up early," she said in a groggy tone of voice.

"Yeah, I've been up for a while now," he said. "I had a hard time sleeping."

"Not me man," she replied. "I love this bed for some reason. Every time I stay here I sleep like a rock."

"I could tell," said Evan with a weak smile.

"Why did you have a hard time sleeping?" she asked turning onto her side to face him.

Evan took a deep breath and just stared at Rebecca.

"Is everything OK?" she asked. "I feel like something is wrong."

"I'm worried about the two of us," said Evan looking down at the bed.

Rebecca froze as Evan brought his eyes up to look into hers. She knew exactly what he was talking about. The only thing that puzzled her was how he actually knew.

"What is going on with the two of us?" Rebecca asked, playing dumb just in case he wasn't talking about her lying to him about wanting a baby.

"Cappie and Casey were on the deck last night having a private conversation that I listened in on," said Evan still staring directly into Rebecca's eyes. "Apparently, you told Casey you are still taking birth control and have no interest in having a baby at the moment."

Rebecca's instincts were to ease away from Evan as quickly as she could. She knew the temper he had and instantly regretted lying to him in the first place. But she also knew she had to stand her ground. She got herself into this mess and she was going to get herself out of it, hopefully still with a loving husband at the end of it.

"Evan, I can explain," she began and stopped waiting for him to interrupt her.

But he didn't. She looked at him strangely as he just continued to stare at her.

"I'm waiting for you to explain," he said.

This was a somewhat weird side to Evan for Rebecca. She expected voices to be raised and a huge argument to be starting. But instead Evan was just about as calm as she has ever seen him. And quite frankly, this side of him scared her more than the ill-tempered Evan.

"Do you remember a night about a month ago when you came home from work and we got into an argument because I accidently forgot to pay the credit card bill?" she asked.

Evan just nodded his head yes.

"I tried everything that night to get you to realize that me forgetting to pay it was just an accident. I paid all the rest of the bills but for some reason the credit card bill just slipped my mind. And you were so set on it being all my fault and upset with me that we went to bed angry that night and you wouldn't talk to me until I apologized to you over and over and over again the next day."

"OK, what does this have to do with what is going on now?" Evan asked in a confused tone.

"How about the next week when you wanted to go out to dinner with a couple of your co-workers and their wives?" Rebecca continued. "I told you I already had plans to go to the gym with a couple of my sorority sisters and then dinner afterwards but you made me cancel my plans so we could go to your dinner."

"How could I forget about that?" Evan asked. "You barely said two words the entire time we were out to dinner. I had to tell them all you weren't feeling well and that's why you didn't talk much."

"Do you see where I'm getting at here?" Rebecca asked.

Evan just shook his head no and stared at her blankly.

"There are a lot of times when you don't listen to me Evan," said Rebecca sitting up straighter in the bed. "You always seem to have to get your way or you have to be the one who is right in the situation and I'm wrong."

"That's not true," said Evan coldly. "You know I love you and include you in the decisions that we make."

"Oh really?" Rebecca asked. "Because if I remember correctly you were the one who came to me and said you were ready to have a baby and the next thing I knew we were in bed making love. I didn't even have time to think about it. And once I did, I realized that I'm just not ready for a child yet."

"So then why didn't you tell me?" Evan asked. "Why didn't you come and talk to me about what you were feeling?"

"Because every time I try to get my voice heard you just reject me and your way always wins," said Rebecca. "I thought we would both win in the situation with me on the birth control. I didn't have to worry about getting pregnant and you got plenty of sex in hopes of getting me pregnant."

"Getting pregnant is hardly just about the sex," said Evan. "I thought having a baby was the next step in our journey in life together. I felt that the two of us are at good times in our lives where having a baby would be a good step."

"No, that's not true," said Rebecca. "YOU felt that way. You never bothered to ask how I felt about it."

Evan sighed and laid on his back. He just stared up at the ceiling for a minute thinking about what Rebecca was saying to him.

"I guess I never realized that I don't give you much of a say in things," he said softly. "And I hate that you couldn't come to me and talk to me about it because you were afraid of the way that I would react."

"There's no denying that you have a temper Evan," said Rebecca. "And if I can do anything to avoid seeing that side of you then I will."

"But it shouldn't be like that," said Evan sitting up. "You shouldn't have to tip toe around me because you don't want me to get upset. That's not the trusting marriage I thought we had."

"I completely agree with you," Rebecca replied. "I want the two of us to work through this. I'm sorry for lying to you. I'm just hoping you can kind of see why I did it."

"So honestly," said Evan looking up at her. "Why aren't you ready to have a baby right now?"

"Could you seriously picture me being a mom?" said Rebecca with a laugh. "I know myself and I'm high maintenance and can be selfish at times. You have to give up so much when you have a baby. I just don't think I can do it."

"Well if it's any conciliation, I would have never approached you about having a baby if I didn't think you would make a great mother," said Evan as he took Rebecca's hand and squeezed it.

She looked up at him and gave him a crooked smile.

"I'm really serious," said Evan not quite understanding her reaction.

"I know," she replied. "I'm just having a hard time seeing this side of you. This calm side of you about this whole situation is kind of freaking me out. What got into you?"

Evan now smiled. "Cappie," he said.

Rebecca gave him a confused look.

"I'll be honest with you," Evan began. "After the crappy night I had last night I wanted nothing more than to go back to Ohio and file for divorce I was so angry finding out you were still on birth control. But Cappie and I went for a walk this morning and talked about things and he really stood up for you. He calmed me down and I realized that I needed to talk with you before I did anything."

"So do you still want to get a divorce?" Rebecca asked.

"Not a chance in hell," said Evan with a smile as he leaned closer and kissed Rebecca softly on the lips.

"Good," she said backing away with a smile. "Because I don't want to give up on you just yet either."

"I would certainly hope not," Evan said.

The two of them squeezed each other's hands and sat staring at each other in a brief moment of silence.

"So where does that leave us when it comes to having a baby then?" Rebecca finally asked.

"I think that is something we don't need to discuss right here and now," said Evan brushing her hair off of her shoulder. "We should go downstairs and visit with our friends and maybe have a much lengthier discussion about it when we get home. And I promise I'll listen to anything you have to say. I don't want you to feel like you have to get pregnant just because I'm ready to have a baby. I want you to be ready too."

"I think that's an excellent plan," said Rebecca as she kissed Evan softly. "And again, I'm really sorry. I know I shouldn't have lied to you. That was the wrong thing to do and I'll try from now on to be a more honest person for myself and you."

"I'm sorry too," said Evan. "And I am going to work more on listening to you and controlling my temper. I love you Rebecca."

"I love you too," said Rebecca leaning in to give him yet another kiss.

She backed away and stood up and began walking towards the door.

"Are you coming downstairs?" she asked.

"You go ahead, I'll be there in just a second," said Evan as he watched her walk out the door and down the stairs.

A couple minutes later Evan made his way downstairs. Casey and Rebecca were sitting at the kitchen table drinking some coffee and Cappie and Cadence were sitting on the couch watching some cartoons. Evan went over to the couch and sat next to Cappie.

"You win," was all he whispered as he handed Cappie a five hundred dollar check.

* * *

The beginning of November came quickly. It had been about a month since Cappie came home from the hospital and he was pretty much back to his old self. He began working with Beaver and some construction companies to clean up and repair the restaurant with the money from the insurance company they had gotten. They were hoping to get the restaurant reopened after the holidays, in early to mid-January. That was dependent on how quickly the contractors worked and of course, when Ashleigh was due to have the twins. But it was still nice to have some sort of plan back in place for the new restaurant now that things were getting back to normal.

Cappie kept in touch more often with Evan than he had been since their talk about the whole Rebecca situation. Cappie wasn't sure what he had said or done during that conversation but somehow it made his friendship with Evan even stronger and it made him feel good. Evan told him that him and Rebecca are doing much better and communicating more than they ever have. They've decided to hold off on getting pregnant for a little while at least which both of them are happy with for the time being.

It was a Saturday afternoon and Cappie and Casey were both in the office while Cadence took her nap. Cappie was crunching numbers and doing some work for the restaurant and Casey reviewing paint samples.

"It's hard to believe that you're going to lose your office here soon," she said holding different shades of blue up to the wall.

"Are you sure we can't just get rid of the guest room and leave my office?" Cappie playfully whined.

"You know we can't do that," said Casey rolling her eyes. "What do you think about this color?"

Cappie turned around and looked at the sample Casey was holding. He squinted his nose in disgust.

"I want my son to have a manly blue in his room," he said. "None of this pale blue that looks girly more than anything."

"Pale blue is not a girly color," Casey argued. "It's always been light pink for baby girls and light blue for baby boys. I intend to keep it that way."

"I'm thinking more of an electric blue," said Cappie with a smile. "Something sharp that says a very manly baby rests here."

"I don't want the kid becoming blind before he's two years old," said Casey.

"Well I veto that color you're holding right now," said Cappie turning back to his work. "Let me know when you find a better one."

Casey sighed as she continued to flip through the paint samples. After a few minutes the phone rang and she went into their bedroom to answer it.

"Hello," she said.

"Hey Case," said Ashleigh. "What are you up to?"

"Ugh, paint samples," said Casey as she sat down on the bed. "Cappie has suddenly decided that pale blue is not manly enough for the new baby so I'm back at square one."

Ashleigh laughed. "Leave it to Cappie to think like that," she said. "That's why we painted our nursery green and yellow so we didn't have to worry about boy and girl colors."

"Smart idea," said Casey.

"So anyway," said Ashleigh. "I called to sort of ask you a favor."

"What's up?" Casey asked.

"I just got a call from my mom," said Ashleigh. "I guess my dad is scheduled to have knee surgery next Friday."

"Oh my, I hope everything is OK," said Casey somewhat worried.

"No, everything is just fine," said Ashleigh. "This is an elective surgery. His knee has always been bad from a football injury he had years ago. The pain is just too much for him to take now though so he's going to have surgery."

"OK, so what can I do for you?" Casey asked.

"Well, I really want to go home next weekend to be with him and make sure everything is OK," she continued. "And Beaver can't go with me because he's got a lot of stuff he has to do for the restaurant. So I was wondering if maybe you wanted to take a road trip with me to visit my parents next weekend?"

"Sure I will Ash," said Casey. "I just have to make sure Cappie doesn't have anything major going on and can watch Cadence. But I don't see why I wouldn't be able to go with you."

"Awesome," said Ashleigh. "I really owe you one Case."

"Not a problem," Casey replied. "Anything for my best friend. I'll talk to Cappie and let you know later today for sure if I can go with you."

"Sounds great," Ashleigh replied. "I'll talk to you later. Have fun with your paint samples."

"Oh yeah, totally," Casey grumbled and then let out a small laugh. "Bye Ash."

Casey hung up the phone and joined Cappie back in the office.

"Was that Ashleigh?" he asked.

"Yeah, how did you know?" Casey replied.

"Well from the way you were talking I was thinking it was either Ashleigh or you mom and I decided to guess Ashleigh first," he said turning around to look at her.

"Ash's dad is having knee surgery next week," Casey stated. "She wants to go home and see him but she doesn't want to go by herself. Beaver I guess has a lot of things going on with the restaurant and can't go so she was wondering if I would be able to join her. I told her I think it would be alright but I had to make sure you didn't have anything major planned so you could watch Cadence."

"The only thing I have planned is a dinner meeting Friday night with some important clients and investors but I could always drop her off at your parent's house for a few hours while I'm there," said Cappie. "You should go ahead and go."

"Great," said Casey. "I'm going to call Ashleigh back right now."

Cappie watched as Casey left the room. He leaned back in his chair and smiled. He loved spending time with Cadence and was now looking forward to having some time alone with her. But then like a ton of bricks something hit him. Even though Cadence was two years old now he really has never been left alone with her for that long of a time. Sure he's been with her while Casey runs errands or out for girls night but to have a few days with just her and him was a little scary to him when first thinking about it. He never realized how much he's relied on Casey to be the primary caregiver for Cadence. It was then he decided that next weekend things were going to be different. Next weekend he was no longer Cappie or dad. Nope, next weekend he was going to be _Mr. Mom_.

* * *

_**A/N: OK, yes I know I have been a super slacker with updating this chapter. I'm really sorry! I really didn't have a whole lot of motivation to write this past week which sucked. And honestly I really didn't like this chapter after I wrote the first part of it...haha. But then I added some of the funnier parts with Evan and Cappie talking about camp and now I really like the chapter. It's strange how my opinion changed I guess. What did you guys think? Hope you don't hate me for the long wait...LoL! But I did make this a pretty long chapter so hopefully that made up for my lack of updating a little bit at least...**_

**_I plan on the next chapter being a funnier one with Cappie alone with Cadence...haha...should be interesting to write. I'm not really sure when I'll update next but I'll try to at least be sooner than I was with this chapter! Thanks to all still reading!_**


	133. Mr Mom Part I

MR. MOM PART I

It was Friday afternoon and Cappie was laying on the bed watching Casey frantically run around the room and shove several things into her suitcase.

"I can't believe Ashleigh is going to be here so soon!" she exclaimed. "I should have packed my bag yesterday. Why do I always wait until the last minute?"

"Case, calm down," said Cappie as he put another pillow behind his head. "You're going to be gone for just a couple of days. You're packing like you're never going to come back."

"I know," Casey whined. "It's just that I've never been away this long and I'm kind of freaking out right now."

"OK, I understand that you're stressed but there is no need to take it out on the clothes," said Cappie as he watched Casey throw more clothes into the suitcase.

"Ugh," Casey sighed as she plopped down onto the bed next to Cappie.

Cappie sat up and began rubbing her shoulders.

"Everything is going to be OK here," he said. "Cadence and I will miss you dearly but Ashleigh needs your support. You two should go and have a good time and not worry about things here."

"Well I don't know how much of a good time we can have given that her dad is having surgery today," Casey replied.

"All the more important that you be there for Ashleigh," said Cappie.

"I know," said Casey leaning closer into Cappie causing him to stop rubbing her shoulders and wrap his arms around her.

The two of them sat there for a few moments before the phone rang interrupting their cuddling.

"I'll get it," said Cappie as he let go of her and climbed to the other side of the bed to get the phone. "Hello," he said.

"Hi Cappie it's Russell. How are you?"

"I'm fine Mr. Cartwright, how are things with you?" Cappie replied.

"I'm afraid I'm calling with a little bit of bad news," Mrs. Cartwright replied. "It turns out Karen made some plans already for us tonight to go to dinner and a movie with some close friends of ours who are in town. I don't believe we'll be able to watch Cadence for you."

"Oh," said Cappie trying not to sound disappointed. "Well thank you for letting me know."

"I hope this doesn't put you in too much of a bind," said Mr. Cartwright. "We would reschedule but this is the only weekend our friends are going to be in town so it's really not possible."

"I understand," Cappie replied. "I'm pretty resourceful. I'll see what I can figure out."

"Sorry about this," Mr. Cartwright replied. "If you need any help later in the weekend we'd be happy to have our little girl over."

"I'm sure we'll be fine," Cappie replied. "But I'll keep that in mind just in case."

"OK, well, have a good evening son," said Mr. Cartwright.

"You too," said Cappie. "Bye."

Cappie hung up the phone and returned to his place laying on the bed.

"Who was that?" Casey asked walking out of the closet with four pairs of shoes in her hands.

"What on earth are you doing with all those shoes?" Cappie asked trying to change the subject.

"I never know if my feet are going to be swollen for the day," said Casey. "So I have a couple of pairs for my fat feet days and a couple of pairs for my non-fat feet days."

"You're strange," said Cappie with a laugh.

Casey just rolled her eyes as she put the shoes in her suitcase.

"Anyway, who was that on the phone?" Casey asked going back to the original question.

Cappie hesitated and realized there wasn't any point in trying to keep the call from Casey.

"It was your dad," Cappie replied. "Your parents apparently have plans with some friends from out of town tonight and they can't watch Cadence."

"Oh my goodness," said Casey. "What are you going to do?"

"I'm not sure," Cappie replied. "That's what I'm trying to think about right now."

"You know, I really don't have to go," she said. "I could just stay here and watch Cadence while you go to your important dinner and we don't even have to deal with the headache."

"No, you're going," said Cappie sternly.

"Well then I can take Cadence with me," Casey stated.

"No, you're not doing that either," said Cappie. "I already told you that we'll be fine. Worst case scenario I take her to dinner with me. She's pretty well behaved. I'll just explain to the guys that the babysitter backed out on me."

"That's really professional bringing a baby to a fancy investor's dinner," said Casey sarcastically.

"I own the damn company Case," said Cappie with a small laugh. "I can do whatever I want."

Casey looked at him with worried eyes.

"You seriously just need to get a grip," said Cappie standing up and putting his hands on her shoulders. "I've got a couple of people I can call and see if they can watch her before it comes to that point. So please just finish packing so you'll be ready for when Ashleigh gets here."

"You're really not going to let me stay are you?" Casey asked looking at him in the eyes.

"Nope, not a chance," he replied with a smile. "And I swear if you put another thing in this suitcase we're going to fight."

"Promise?" Casey asked seductively as she pushed Cappie back to sit on the bed.

Casey grinned at Cappie as she leaned in and began to kiss him.

"I'm certainly going to miss this for a couple of days," said Cappie against Casey's lips causing her to kiss him harder.

The two of them kissed for a couple of minutes and just when Cappie was about to run his hands underneath Casey's shirt the phone rang again.

"Of course the phone rings," said Cappie as he watched Casey climb off of him and walk over to the phone.

He was busy regaining his composure and caught the tail end of the conversation.

"OK, I'll be ready in a few minutes," he heard Casey say. "Bye."

"I take it that was Ashleigh," said Cappie standing up off the bed.

"Yeah, she's on her way," Casey replied. "Could you carry my suitcase downstairs while I say goodbye to Cadence?"

"Sure," Cappie replied as he picked up the large suitcase Casey had packed. "Just try not to wake Cadence up all the way. The more sleep she gets the less cranky she is and I may need that tonight if I have to take her to the dinner with me."

"OK," Casey replied.

Cappie watched Casey walk into Cadence's room as he lugged her heavy suitcase down the stairs. He waited by the front door for her to appear a few minutes later.

"She barely woke up," said Casey as she got to the bottom of the stairs.

"Excellent," said Cappie. "That should give me some time to come up with another babysitter."

"Are you sure you just don't want me to stay?" Casey asked. "I really don't want some random person watching Cadence."

"I'm not going to get some random person," Cappie replied. "There are a couple of girls from work that I know pretty well that may be available. I could also see if the neighbors would be able to watch her. So stop worrying. Everything will be just fine."

"Alright," Casey grumbled. "But call me if you need anything. I'll have my cell with me all the time."

Cappie just nodded as he saw Ashleigh pull into the driveway.

"Time for you to go," he said opening the door and taking her suitcase to the car.

"Hey guys!" said Ashleigh through the rolled down window. "Are you ready Case?"

"I guess so," Casey replied as she watched Cappie put the suitcase in the trunk.

He shut the door and walked over to Casey. He set his hands on the sides of her waist as she put her hands loosely around his neck.

"I'm going to miss you," said Casey.

"I'm going to miss you too," Cappie replied. "But I'm sure we'll talk several times over the course of the weekend."

"I hope you're able to find someone to watch her for you tonight," said Casey.

"I'll just do what I can do," said Cappie. "You guys should get going though. I love you and have a safe trip."

"I love you too," said Casey as she stood on her tip toes and shared a soft, romantic kiss with Cappie.

They both broke away at the same time and smiled at each other.

"Make sure you drive nice and slow Ash," said Cappie as he watched Casey get into the car. "You have a lot of precious cargo there."

"Yes sir," said Ashleigh with a small laugh.

Cappie gave a slight wave as he watched the car back out of the driveway and began going down the street. When they were out of sight he turned around and went back into the house.

Once inside he took a deep breath and took in how empty it felt all of a sudden. But he didn't have time to really think about things. He was on a mission to find a babysitter.

* * *

Two hours later Cappie was up in Cadence's room with her picking out a dress for her to wear to dinner that night. He had tried calling everyone he could think of to babysit for Cadence but he didn't have any luck. Everyone seemed to have plans already for the night. So he was stuck taking Cadence to dinner with him.

"Do you want to wear the pink dress or the yellow dress?" Cappie asked holding the two dresses up to Cadence.

"Pink one!" Cadence exclaimed.

"I should have known," Cappie mumbled as he hung the yellow dress back up in the closet.

"Daddy, where mommy?" Cadence asked.

"Remember I told you that she had to go with Auntie Ashleigh on a trip?" Cappie asked.

Cadence shook her head no.

"Well mommy will be back in a couple of days," continued Cappie. "And in the meantime you and I are going to go to a fancy dinner tonight with some important people from my work. So we need to get you dressed."

Cadence helped Cappie take off the current shirt and pants she was wearing and wiggle her way into the pink dress she picked.

"That looks pretty good," said Cappie looking at her twirl around in the dress.

"Tights," said Cadence pointing to her legs.

"Oh lord," Cappie mumbled as he got up and went over to the dresser. He remembered how difficult it was the last time getting tights on Cadence for Ashleigh's wedding and honestly thought he would never have to do it again.

He pulled out several pairs of tights testing each one for their elasticity. One particular white pair appeared to have the most stretch in them so he picked those. He sat on the floor and pulled Cadence into his lap.

"OK, give me this foot," he said pointing to her right foot.

Cadence obeyed and Cappie slid her foot into the one side of the tights trying as gently as he could to pull it on without ripping it. At one point his ring got caught on the tights and he had to stop and take it off before he could continue.

"Push your foot down into that," said Cappie realizing she still had a significant amount of fabric at the bottom of her foot.

"I can't," said Cadence pushing as hard as she could. "Daddy pull."

Cappie obeyed and eventually with Cadence pushing and Cappie pulling they were able to get one leg on. It only took them about five minutes, something that probably took Casey thirty seconds to do. Cappie then began working on the second leg putting it on much like the first.

"OK, stand up and let me see," said Cappie.

Cadence stood up and twirled again smiling at Cappie.

"Those look pretty good," said Cappie. "How do they feet?"

"Good," Cadence replied.

"Awesome," said Cappie. "See, I can do this."

Cappie stood up and was about to go into his room to change into his suit when he felt Cadence tap his leg.

"Do you need something?" Cappie asked looking down at her.

"Poopy diaper," said Cadence with a giggle.

"You need to be changed?" Cappie asked.

Cadence nodded her head yes.

"Like right now?" Cappie asked.

Cadence again nodded her head yes.

"Great," he mumbled as he picked her up and laid her on the changing table.

Cappie at first contemplated just leaving the diaper unchanged given the hell he just went through putting the tights on but decided against it when he began to smell the odor coming from her diaper. He tried at first to just pull the tights down a little bit to get to the diaper. But he quickly learned that it wasn't working. Cadence just giggled away as she watched Cappie attempt to fit the diaper through the small opening he created with the tights so he didn't have to take them off.

"Why didn't you tell me you had to be changed BEFORE we put the tights on?" Cappie asked.

Cadence just continued to giggle, unaware of how much grief she was actually causing Cappie at the moment.

Finally Cappie had enough and pulled the tights completely off of her.

"That's it, daddy's in charge and I say no tights tonight," he said putting them back in the dresser drawer.

Cappie finished changing her diaper and set her back down on the ground.

"You play in here while I go and get changed now," he said.

Cappie again was about to walk out of the room when Cadence tapped him on the leg.

"What is it now?" he asked looking down at her.

"I want bow in my hair," she said pointing to her head.

"Cadence your hair is just fine the way it is," said Cappie dreading having to put some sort of bow in her hair.

"Daaaadddyyyyyy," Cadence whined. "Mommy does it."

"I thought we agreed we were going to do things daddy's way this weekend," said Cappie.

"I want a bow!" Cadence yelled as she grumpily sat on the ground and crossed her arms in front of her.

Cappie hesitated and looked down at Cadence who was avoiding eye contact with him. On one hand he wanted to be a strong dad and put his foot down and say no. But on the other hand he didn't want Cadence to be cranky for the night and decided to give in to her. So he walked over to her dresser and dug through the many bows Casey had collected for her. He found the one that looked the least difficult to put on and sat down next to Cadence. He began to grab some of her hair to put the bow in when she finally turned around to look at him.

"I don't want that one!" she whined.

"Cadence, a bow is a bow, what is the problem?" Cappie asked.

"That's blue," she said taking it out of Cappie's hand. "I wear pink."

"Why do women always have to color coordinate?" Cappie mumbled under his breath as he stood up and went back over to the dresser.

"Huh?" Cadence asked.

"Never mind," said Cappie with a sigh. "How about this one?" he asked holding a pink bow up to Cadence.

"Good," said Cadence with a smile.

"Now I just have to figure out how to put this on your head," said Cappie as he attempted to undo the clasp on the back of the hair bow.

He finally got it loose and knelt down behind Cadence. He took some of her hair and pulled it back and wrapped the clasp around it. He turned Cadence around and looked at her.

"Well, I guess it's not so bad," said Cappie.

"Thank you daddy," said Cadence sweetly.

"You're welcome," said Cappie giving her a kiss on the cheek. "Now I'm going to go and get ready and I'll come get you when I'm done."

"OK," Cadence replied as she walked over to her dolls and began playing with them.

Cappie watched her for a couple of seconds before making his way to his room to get dressed. He looked at his watch on his way there and realized Beaver would be there any minute so he hurried as quickly as he could.

Cappie was just finishing up adjusting his tie when Beaver walked in the front door.

"Honey, I'm home!" he yelled.

"I'm upstairs just finishing up getting ready," Cappie yelled down to him.

Beaver made his way upstairs and into Cappie's room.

"You're looking pretty snazzy," said Beaver observing Cappie's suit.

"Thanks," Cappie replied. "I just got this suit a week or two ago."

"Is Cadence ready?" Beaver asked.

"Yeah, she's in her room playing," Cappie replied. "I'm really sorry we have to bring her tonight. I tried my hardest to find someone to watch her."

"Not a big deal Cap," said Beaver. "I'm sure the guys won't mind."

"Hope so," Cappie replied grabbing his suit jacket and walking out of the room. "Come on Cadence, we're ready to go. Uncle Beaver is here."

"Beaver!" yelled Cadence as she ran out of her room and up to Beaver.

Beaver picked Cadence up and then gave Cappie a disgusted look.

"What?" Cappie asked.

"You're seriously going to let her go to one of the fanciest restaurants in town with her hair looking like this?" Beaver asked.

"What are you talking about? She looks fine," said Cappie defending himself.

"Cap, you have her ponytail off to the side," said Beaver beginning to laugh. "She looks like she belongs in the 1980s."

"Oh like you could do better," said Cappie rolling his eyes.

"As a matter of fact, I can," said Beaver setting Cadence down in front of him.

Cappie watched as Beaver delicately took Cadence's hair and put the bow in her hair perfectly straight and in the place it was supposed to be.

"Lucky shot," said Cappie as he began to walk down the steps.

"Actually I've been practicing," said Beaver as he picked Cadence up and followed Cappie down the stairs. "You would be surprised how much a doll's hair is like human hair."

"Wait, you have been practicing hair styles on dolls in your spare time?" Cappie asked beginning to laugh.

"Hey, at least I'll be able to put a bow in my daughter's hair," said Beaver giving Cappie a playful punch in the arm.

"Even though you have just destroyed my ego," said Cappie continuing to laugh. "I have to thank you for fixing it."

"You're welcome," Beaver replied. "Now let's get going to the restaurant. I don't want to be late."

* * *

Beaver, Cappie and Cadence arrived at the restaurant a little early so they went ahead and got a table.

"So who exactly is coming again?" Cappie asked as he put Cadence in the highchair.

"Adam Shultz, Ted Armstrong and Marty Gomez," Beaver replied. "They are all practically millionaires and if we can get them to invest we could possibly expand the business, maybe even to different cities."

"Wow, that would be awesome Beave," said Cappie.

"Daddy I'm hungry," Cadence whined.

"We will order the food as soon as the millionaires join us," Cappie replied.

"What's a millon-air?" Cadence asked.

"Um, a very rich man," Cappie replied looking at the front door and noticing three men in suits entering the restaurant. "Is that them?" he asked Beaver.

"Yes it is," said Beaver standing and waving the men to the table.

Cappie also stood up and introduced himself to the three men as they reached the table. Mr. Shultz was a rather tall and lanky man with dark brown hair. He owns several car dealerships in the area. Mr. Armstrong is much shorter compared to the rest of the men and a little overweight. He has gray hair and wears large glasses. He reminds Cappie of a nerd which is quite fitting as he has several computer sales and repair shops in the tri-state area. And finally Mr. Gomez is of average height but also overweight. He has glasses and a bald head. He is a retired physician who now works for several medical equipment companies coming up with new gadgets and inventions.

"It's a pleasure to have you men here with us tonight," said Beaver. "Thank you so much for your time."

"It's our pleasure too," said Mr. Armstrong. "The Beaver is probably the most successful restaurant the area has seen in years. We are very excited to hear what you have to offer."

"And who is this?" Mr. Gomez asked looking at Cadence.

"This is Cadence," Cappie replied. "I'm very sorry but my babysitter cancelled for the night so I didn't have any choice but to bring her. My wife is out of town."

"No problem," said Mr. Gomez reaching his hand out to Cadence. "She is a cute little girl."

"Cadence shake the nice man's hand," said Cappie.

Cadence shook his hand and turned to Cappie as he sat in his seat.

"Daddy, where is his hair?" she said quite loudly.

Cappie froze and looked straight at Beaver. He could feel his face turning a very bright shade of red.

"Uh, he, uh," Cappie was stumbling trying to get the words out.

"Let's just say I left it at home dear," said Mr. Gomez with a laugh.

Everyone else at the table also laughed except for Cappie. He was still mortified of Cadence's comment.

"Relax Mr. Cappington," said Mr. Gomez between his laughs. "She didn't mean any harm."

Cappie smiled awkwardly and gave Cadence a stern look. Cadence knew she had said something wrong but she couldn't understand why everyone was laughing and her dad was so upset.

"Can I get you gentlemen something to drink?" the waitress asked as she walked up to the table.

Everyone at the table but Cappie ordered alcoholic drinks. He ordered a coke for him and apple juice for Cadence. After looking over the menu for several minutes they ordered the food and then got down to business.

"So gentlemen," said Mr. Armstrong. "I heard what happened with the second restaurant and the fire. Are there plans to re-open that location?"

"Yes, we are in the process of doing that right now," said Beaver. "It's been slow getting everything cleaned up and things back in place."

"We are hoping to have that location open again after the holiday season," added Cappie.

"Well I commend you two for re-opening the restaurant," said Mr. Shultz. "I know starting all over again must be difficult."

"Daddy I'm hungry," Cadence whined.

"The food will be here shortly," said Cappie. "Here, have a piece of bread to hold you over."

Cadence took the bread from Cappie and began nibbling on it.

"How old is she?" Mr. Armstrong asked.

"A little over two years," said Cappie.

"Oh the terrible twos," said Mr. Shultz. "I have three kids and every one of them went through that stage where they just didn't want to listen to anyone."

"Tell me about it," said Cappie with a small laugh. "You must be a saint for going through that with three kids."

"Daddy you said he millon-air," said Cadence.

"Heh, heh," Cappie laughed nervously.

"Did daddy tell you what a millionaire is Cadence?" asked Mr. Shultz.

Cappie sank further into his chair. At this point in time he just wanted to leave the table and hide in the bathroom.

"A rich man," Cadence replied with a smile.

"You are a very smart girl," said Mr. Armstrong.

"Thank you," Cadence replied as she batted her eyelashes looking as innocent as could be.

"I guess Cadence has just kind of broken the ice here," said Beaver taking control of the conversation. "The reason we invited you guys to dinner is to discuss possibly investing in The Beaver restaurants."

"What kind of plans do you have for the future?" Mr. Gomez asked.

"Well, given the success of our current restaurants we are looking to expand and open locations in other cities or even other states depending on the demand," Beaver replied. "I will be honest though, I don't want my restaurants to turn into some crazy chain like McDonalds but I would like to maybe open a couple more locations in possibly southern Illinois, Indiana and Ohio."

"That seems like a promising plan," said Mr. Armstrong. "Do you happen to have any figures and specifics that we can look at?"

"Yes, I have those," said Cappie as he pulled a folder out of his briefcase.

"Daddy I need changed," said Cadence as Cappie handed the papers around the table.

"Not right now princess," said Cappie as nicely as he could. "As soon as I'm done talking with the nice men I'll change you."

"Are these figures monthly, quarterly or yearly?" Mr. Armstrong asked as he was looking over the papers.

"Those are quarterly," Cappie replied.

"Daddy I need changed!" Cadence yelled a little louder.

Cappie watched as several people in the restaurant turned and looked over at his table. He was trying everything he could to keep his face from becoming red once again. He decided to ignore Cadence and continue discussing things with the investors.

"DADDY!" Cadence yelled after another minute.

Cappie turned towards Cadence and put his finger up to his mouth telling her to be quite and turned back to the meeting he was having.

"DADDY!" Cadence yelled again, ignoring his request for her to be quiet. "DADDY!"

"Excuse me gentlemen," said Cappie in a frustration tone. "Keep looking over some of the papers while I go and change her and I'll be back in a bit to answer any questions you may have."

Cappie watched the investors all shake their heads but he could clearly see that they were becoming annoyed by the looks on their faces. Cappie picked Cadence up out of the highchair and went out to the Jeep.

"I thought I told you that you needed to be on your best behavior tonight young lady," said Cappie as they exited the restaurant.

"But I dirty daddy," whined Cadence.

"I know," Cappie sighed. "I'll get the diaper bag, get you changed and can you promise to be better behaved when we go back to the table?"

Cadence just shook her head yes as Cappie got to the car. He unlocked the trunk and opened it to find it empty.

"Hm, I could have sworn I put the diaper bag in here," he said to himself.

Cappie closed the trunk and opened the back door to the car to see if it was in the back seat and it was still nowhere to be found. He then began to panic realizing his mistake.

"Cadence, daddy forgot your diaper bag," he said as he set her on one of the seats in the back of the Jeep.

"Uh oh!" said Cadence with a little giggle.

"Yeah, big uh oh," said Cappie. "I don't know what to do. You're going to have to just wait until we get home to get changed."

"NO!" yelled Cadence. "Change now!"

"Cadence, I told you already that I can't change you. I don't have a diaper," said Cappie wondering why he was standing there arguing with his two year old daughter.

"Daaadddy," she whined. "I dirty."

Cappie watched as the tears began to swell in her eyes. The last thing he wanted was for her to cry. He had such a soft spot for her when she cried.

"OK," said Cappie with a deep breath. "Let's go into the bathroom and see what I can do."

Cappie picked Cadence up, locked the car and made his way back into the restaurant. Since it was a fancier restaurant there was an attendant in the bathroom who met them when he walked in.

"This may sound really strange but do you have a diaper perhaps?" Cappie asked.

"No sir, sorry," the attendant replied.

"OK," said Cappie as he scanned the bathroom. "Do you even have a baby changing station?"

"No sir, sorry," the attendant replied.

"This just keeps getting better," said Cappie as he walked over to the sink counter and set Cadence down.

He quickly undid Cadence's diaper and the smell quickly filled the bathroom. Cappie grabbed a few paper towels and wiped her butt clean. He then took the diaper off and threw it in the garbage.

"OK, now what?" Cappie mumbled to himself as he looked around the room. He was then sparked with an idea. "Do you guys have feminine products for the women's bathroom?" he asked the attendant.

"Yes we do," he replied.

"Here's ten bucks," said Cappie pulling it out of his pocket and handing it to him. "Go and get me one of those pad things."

"Sir, I can't go into the women's bathroom," said the attendant.

"Right now I really don't care what you have to do to get it, just go get it," said Cappie. "Knock on the door if you have to."

The attendant could see the seriousness in Cappie's eyes and quickly went out the door and over to the women's bathroom. He came back a minute later with a pad.

"Thank you," said Cappie as he took it out of his hand.

He unwrapped it and positioned it underneath Cadence.

"Daddy what are you doing?" Cadence asked.

"Not now Cadence, daddy is thinking," Cappie replied as he scanned the room for something to hold the pad into place.

He finally went into the bathroom stall and came out with a roll of toilet paper and began wrapping it around Cadence to hold the pad in place.

"Do you have any tape?" Cappie asked as he ended the roll of toilet paper and needed something to secure it.

"No sir, sorry," the attendant replied.

"Of course you do," Cappie replied. "You're a business. Somewhere back in the back you have to have a roll of scotch tape or a stapler or something that I can hold this down with."

"I'm not sure sir," was the all the attendant said.

"Look buddy," said Cappie stepping towards him. "I have a very important dinner with investors out there that I need to get back to. So you need to go into whatever office you guys may have and find me something to hold this makeshift diaper together or I'm going to lose it. And you don't want to see me lose it."

The attendant's eyes grew wide as he quickly ran out of the door to find Cappie whatever he needed. He returned a minute later with a roll of tape.

"See, that wasn't so bad," said Cappie as he took the tape and began securing the toilet paper around Cadence.

Once he was finished Cappie helped Cadence stand up and he attempted to put her dress around the new diaper he made but he had wrapped so much toilet paper around her that the dress wouldn't go down.

"Well darling, I guess tonight you're just going to show off a little skin for the rest of the night," said Cappie with a laugh as he picked her back up.

"Daddy I feel weird," said Cadence.

"Just please deal with it for now," said Cappie. "As soon as we get home I'll get you in a proper diaper and we'll forget this ever happened."

Cappie arrived back at the table to see that the food had arrived while he was gone.

"Sorry we didn't wait for you Cap," said Beaver taking a bite of his steak. "You took longer than we expected."

"There was a line for the changing table," Cappie said nonchalantly as he set Cadence back down in the highchair trying his best to hide the mound of toilet paper around her waist.

Cappie cut up Cadence's chicken tenders and gave her the plate to begin eating. He let out a little sigh of relief when he was finally able to relax and eat his own meal.

The gentlemen talked several aspects of the business while they were finishing their meals.

"Can you give me the last roll?" Beaver asked Cappie.

"Sure," Cappie replied and without thinking picked up the roll and tossed it towards Beaver.

"Yay! Fun!" Cadence exclaimed as she picked up a piece of her chicken tender and threw it to the other side of the table.

"Cadence no!" said Cappie as he took her plate away from her.

But he was one second too late. She had picked up another piece of her chicken and again threw it across the table.

"Ow! My eye!" Mr. Shultz exclaimed as he quickly brought his hand up to his eye.

"Oh my god!" said Beaver as he quickly stood up and went over to Mr. Shultz. "Here, let me see."

"It got right in the center of my eye," said Mr. Shultz. "I can feel a crumb or something in there."

"Here, let's use a little water to wash it out," said Mr. Armstrong as he stood up with his glass of water.

He began to slowly run the water in Mr. Shultz's eye.

"I am so sorry about this," said Cappie as he stood up and went over to them. But without paying attention he bumped Mr. Armstrong's elbow and the entire glass of water ended up spilling all over Mr. Shultz's face.

"Oh no!" said Beaver as he began frantically grabbing napkins and wiping off Mr. Shultz's face and suit.

"Enough!" Mr. Shultz finally yelled as everyone backed away from him.

The restaurant was completely quiet. All eyes were staring at their group. Mr. Shultz finished up drying off his face and suit and blinked his eyes a few times to make sure the crumb had fallen out of it.

"Are you alright?" Mr. Gomez asked.

"Yes, I'm fine," Mr. Shultz replied. "But I think we've had enough here tonight."

"Cadence, what were you thinking?" Cappie asked in a scolding voice. "You really hurt that man. I have never seen you be such a bad girl."

"I'm, I'm sorry daddy," said Cadence as she began to cry.

"You don't need to say sorry to me," said Cappie. "You need to go tell Mr. Shultz that you're sorry."

Cappie picked Cadence up out of the highchair and set her on the ground. She slowly walked up to Mr. Shultz with her hands clasped neatly in front of her and her head focused on the ground.

"I'm sorry mister," she said looking up at him, tears now streaming down her face. "I'm sorry."

Mr. Shultz looked down at Cadence and suddenly began to laugh. The rest of the men gave him confused looks.

"Oh come on, look at her," he said kneeling down next to Cadence. "I'm sure you really didn't mean to hurt me."

Cadence shook her head no.

"And there is no way I can stay mad at a little girl crying with a whole roll of toilet paper wrapped around her waist," said Mr. Shultz as he began hysterically laughing.

The rest of the guys at the table finally noticed what Mr. Shultz was talking about and they also broke into laughter.

"That's quite possibly the funniest thing I have seen in a long time," said Mr. Armstrong as he wiped the tears off his face from laughing so hard.

Once they had all stopped laughing Cappie lifted Cadence up and put her back in the highchair so everyone wasn't staring at his poor attempt to make a diaper for her.

"Boys, I have to say this has been one of the most interesting dinners we've been invited to," said Mr. Gomez.

"Again, I'm really—"

"No need to be sorry Mr. Cappington," said Mr. Shultz. "You've got yourself a beautiful little girl over there. And I'll be happy to invest my money into anyone who can make me laugh as hard as I did here tonight."

"Really?" Cappie asked.

"Well, that, and the fact that your figures look really good," said Mr. Armstrong.

"Wow, thanks," said Cappie shaking his hand.

"We will talk specifics in the next week or two," said Mr. Gomez. "Why don't we set up another meeting at The Beaver? It seems like it would be a fitting place to discuss things."

"Yes, sure, no problem," said Beaver also shaking his hand.

"Pleasure doing business with you gentlemen," said Mr. Armstrong.

"You too," said Cappie as he and Beaver exchanged handshakes with all of them. "We will be in contact to set something up with you."

"Sounds good," said Mr. Shultz.

Cappie and Beaver stood and watched the three investors walk out of the restaurant. As soon as they were out of sight both of them sank down into their chairs.

"That was a nightmare," said Cappie. "Out of the three of them she has to hit the one guy who is not wearing glasses."

"I guess she's got good aim," said Beaver trying not to laugh.

"I thought we lost their support for a second there," said Cappie.

"No kidding," said Beaver. "What in the heck happened? Why is your daughter wearing a mound of toilet paper around her ass?"

"To keep the maxipad on her," said Cappie with a small laugh.

"What?" Beaver asked giving him a strange look.

"Long story," said Cappie shaking his head. "But the shortened version is that I forgot the diaper bag."

"Nice," was all Beaver replied as he smiled at Cappie.

The waitress soon brought the bill to them. Beaver paid and they got back into the Jeep and went back to Cappie's house. Beaver got right into his car and went home. Cappie took Cadence up to her room right away to get a real diaper on her. Once she was changed and into her pajamas Cappie sat in the rocking chair with her in his lap.

"I'm sorry I was a horrible daddy today Cadence," he said with a sigh. "I couldn't put your tights on, I couldn't put a bow in your hair and I forgot to take the diaper bag to dinner with us. I'm starting to wonder how mommy does it all."

"I love you daddy," said Cadence as she leaned her head down on Cappie's shoulder.

"Aw, thanks princess," said Cappie as he rubbed his hand up and down her back. "I promise I'll try and be better tomorrow."

Cappie just sat there rocking back and forth for the next half an hour until Cadence was fast asleep in his arms. He slowly picked her up and set her in her bed.

"I love you," he whispered as he kissed her on the cheek.

Cappie put up the side rail on the bed and walked out into the hall, quietly shutting the door behind him. He went into his room and stripped down to his boxers as quickly as he could. Then, like his legs couldn't hold him up anymore, he sank down onto the bed. He sat there for a few minutes thinking about the events of the night when the phone ringing jolted him out of his thoughts.

"Hello," he said quickly answering it.

"Hey honey," said Casey. "Sorry I didn't call sooner. We were caught up at the hospital with Ashleigh's dad. Everything with the surgery went well. He was even up walking to the bathroom this evening."

"That's great," said Cappie.

"So how did things go for you tonight?" Casey asked. "Did Cadence behave during the dinner?"

"She couldn't have been a more perfect angel," said Cappie with a smile as he leaned back on the bed.

* * *

_**A/N: So what do you guys think about the first part of Mr. Mom? I hope it was cute and funny for you to read. I originally planned to have the whole weekend in one chapter but this first part ended up being so long I decided to break it into two chapters so you'll get Mr. Mom Part II in the next chapter.**_

_**Also just wanted to take a second to thank a few of the new reviewers I got for the last chapter. Jessica98, Jessec12 and MJ...you guys are awesome and thank you so much for your kind words. They totally made my day. It's people like you and my awesome regular reviewers that I continue to write this story and it's turned out to be a thousand times longer than I ever expected it to be! But I just wanted to say thanks to you and all my readers and reviewers. You guys sure know how to put a smile on my face! Hopefully this chapter put a smile on yours too! :0)**_


	134. Mr Mom Part II

MR. MOM PART II

"Daddy!" Cadence yelled through the baby monitor.

Cappie groaned and rolled over in bed. She had been calling him for the past ten minutes. He tried to ignore her hoping she would fall back asleep but he quickly realized she wasn't going to let up anytime soon. He sighed as he stood up and went into Cadence's room.

"Hi daddy!" she said excitedly sitting up in the bed.

"Hi sweetheart," said Cappie leaning down and giving her a kiss on the forehead. "Did you sleep well?"

"Yup," Cadence replied.

Cappie lowered her bed rail and she climbed and sat up on the edge of the bed.

"What should we do today?" Cappie asked kneeling down in front of her.

"Play!" said Cadence clapping her hands together.

"I think I can do that," said Cappie taking her hand and leading her towards the door.

"No daddy," said Cadence pulling her hand out of Cappie's. "Change."

"Oh OK," said Cappie as he picked her up and set her down on the changing table.

After a couple of minutes Cappie had her diaper changed and a set of new clothes on her.

"Let's go and get some breakfast," he said picking her up and carrying her downstairs. "What would you like?"

"Mommy makes pancakes," Cadence replied.

"How about some cereal?" Cappie asked trying to find something easier to make.

"No pancakes!" Cadence exclaimed as Cappie set her down in the highchair.

"Cadence, I'm not really sure how to make pancakes," Cappie said.

"In the pan!" Cadence replied pointing to the stove.

"I think a bowl of Cheerios would be so much more yummy," said Cappie taking the box of cereal out of the cupboard.

"NO! Pancake!" said Cadence banging her hand down on the tray of the highchair.

"Now hasn't mom taught you that you can't always get what you want?" Cappie asked her.

"PANCAKE!" she exclaimed again, ignoring Cappie's comment.

"I said cereal," said Cappie taking a bowl out and pouring the cereal in it.

"PANCAKE!"

"Cereal."

"PANCAKE!"

"Cereal."

"PANCAKE!"

Cappie was about to open his mouth and tell Cadence again she was going to be having cereal when he realized arguing with his two year old wasn't going to get him anywhere yet again. She was going to have cereal and she was going to like it. He poured some milk on top of the Cheerios and set the bowl down in front of her.

"No more yelling," he said. "You're going to eat what I give you."

Cadence just stared at him expressionless. Cappie took this as a win and went back into the kitchen to make himself a bowl of cereal. As he was putting the milk back into the refrigerator he heard a crash on the ground behind him.

"PANCAKE!" Cadence yelled again as he turned around to find her bowl of Cheerios all over the floor.

"Cadence, why would you do such a thing?" Cappie asked grabbing a couple of towels.

"No cereal," she said.

Cappie's anger was quickly growing inside of him as he got down on his knees and began cleaning up the cereal that was all over the floor. After a couple of minutes he finished and thought about his next move. On one hand he could just make Cadence a pancake and make her happy but on the other she needed to learn that she can't always get what she wants and he would make her another bowl of the cereal. After thinking about it for a few minutes he realized he wasn't in the mood to deal with a cranky baby all day and if making her one silly pancake prevented that then he would just go ahead and do it. Pancakes actually sounded kind of good to him also.

"Alright, you win," he said throwing the cereal into the trash. "We'll have pancakes."

"Yay!" said Cadence clapping her hands in the air.

"Now, how in the hell am I going to make a pancake?" Cappie mumbled to himself as he opened the cupboards searching and praying Casey had some pancake mix that he could just add water to and put them on the griddle. But after a couple minutes of searching he didn't find anything of that sort.

"Wait here, I'll be right back," he said to Cadence as he went upstairs to the office.

Cappie went on the computer and typed in 'easy pancake recipe' and hit the search button. He found the recipe with the least ingredients and printed out a copy. He then ran back downstairs searching the cupboards for all the ingredients.

"Daddy, what taking so long?" Cadence asked.

"This is the first time daddy has done this sweetheart," said Cappie pulling out the flour. "Give me a little bit of time."

"OK," was all Cadence replied.

After finding all the ingredients Cappie found a bowl and prepared to start. He first opened the brand new bag of flour. And when he did a cloud of flour busted out when he opened the bag and went all over his face. Cadence began giggling uncontrollably at the sight.

"Daddy you look like a ghost!" she said through her laughs.

"I'm glad you could be amused by this," said Cappie wiping off his face and continuing with the recipe.

The rest of the ingredients were added to the bowl without incident and mixed to perfection, even though it was still a little lumpy. Cappie then set the pan on the stove and put it on medium heat. He poured several scoops of batter into the pan and watched as they started to cook.

"See, daddy can do this," he said proudly.

He then found a spatula to flip them but wasn't really sure when to do so and the recipe didn't tell him either. So instead he put the lid on the pan thinking that all the heat would be trapped inside and cook both sides of the pancakes evenly. As they cooked he poured a couple glasses of milk for him and Cadence and set them down on the table.

"Are you ready for daddy's awesome pancakes?" he said to her.

"Oh yeah!" she replied.

Just then the phone rang. Cappie searched around the kitchen and living room but the downstairs phone was nowhere to be found. He ran as quickly as he could upstairs to the phone in his bedroom.

"Hello," he said out of breath.

"Hey honey, is everything OK?" Casey asked noticing Cappie's shortness of breath.

"Just fine," Cappie replied. "I couldn't find the phone downstairs so I had to run upstairs to answer it. How is everything with you?"

"I'm doing fine," Casey replied. "Ashleigh and I just woke up so I figured I would call and see how your morning was going."

"Cadence and I were just about to have to breakfast actually," said Cappie.

"Oh that reminds me," said Casey. "She loves pancakes and I wasn't sure if you would be able to make them or not so I made a few extra the last time I made them and put them in a container in the refrigerator. You just have to heat them in the microwave and they should be just fine."

Cappie brought the phone away from his ear in disgust as Casey explained to him about the pancakes that were already in the refrigerator for him.

"That's great, thanks," he said through his gritted teeth.

"DADDY! SMOKE!" he heard Cadence yell from downstairs.

"Is everything OK?" Casey asked.

"Um, yeah," said Cappie as now the smoke alarm downstairs was going off. "I've gotta go. Love you. Bye!"

With that he quickly hung up the phone and ran downstairs to find the stove area completely filled with smoke. He ran over and turned off the stove. He looked at Cadence who had her hands over her ears from the loud sound of the smoke alarm.

"It's OK Cadence," he said as he began opening the back door and several windows to let the smoke out.

"Daddy it's too loud!" Cadence yelled.

Cappie then went over and took the battery out of the smoke alarm so it would turn off.

"There," he said as it silenced. "No more loud noises."

Cadence took her hands off of her ears and looked at her dad with a worried expression on her face.

"What happened?" she asked.

"I let the pancakes cook a little too long," said Cappie with a sigh as he sat down on one of the kitchen chairs.

"I sorry," said Cadence sadly.

"What are you sorry for?" Cappie asked.

"I should have had cereal," she said.

Cappie looked up at her. Her blue eyes were darkened with sadness and she had her eyebrows scrunched together like she was about to cry.

"It's alright," he said standing up and bending down in front of her highchair. "It was my fault for not looking hard enough in the refrigerator. Mommy already made us some pancakes but I didn't see them."

"She did?" Cadence asked softly.

"Yeah," Cappie replied. "How about I get them ready for us to eat?"

Cadence just shook her head yes as Cappie stood up and went over to the stove to assess the damage. Most of the smoke was cleared out and all that was left was the pan on the stove. He lifted up the lid to find the pancakes completely burnt to a crisp. He took the pan over to the sink and put some water in it for it to soak. He then made his way to the refrigerator and found the container full of pancakes Casey had left them. He took a few out and heated them up in the microwave. After they were finished he put some butter and syrup on them and sat back down at the table.

"I think these are going to be much better," he said as he cut Cadence's into little bites for her.

He set the plate down in front of her and watched her take the first bite.

"Yummy," she said with a smile.

Cappie smiled back at her as he also began eating his breakfast. At that point he was able to breathe a sigh of relief. He just hoped the rest of the day would be easier than his morning had been.

After finishing his breakfast Cappie quickly got dressed and cleaned up the kitchen while Cadence played with her toys in the living room.

"How about we watch a movie and then head out for the day?" Cappie asked.

"OK!" Cadence replied. "Change first."

"You need changed again?" Cappie asked.

Cadence shook her head yes as Cappie picked her up and set her down on the floor where Casey usually changes her diaper.

"You know, I think it's about time you start to learn to use the potty," said Cappie as he pulled the diaper off of her and positioned the new one.

Cadence just stared at him like he was talking in a foreign language while Cappie finished putting on the new diaper.

"All done," said Cappie as Cadence stood up and sat down on the couch.

Cappie threw her diaper away and walked over to the shelf full of DVDs.

"Any movie in particular you want to watch?" Cappie asked.

"Bambi!" said Cadence.

Cappie searched the shelves and finally found Bambi and put the disc into the DVD player. He sat next to Cadence on the couch and the movie started. They both watched the movie intently for the first half. About halfway through Cadence leaned closer to Cappie and rested her head on his chest. Cappie smiled as he loosely put his arm around her and continued to watch the movie. It was moments like this that made him the most happy with his life. There was no doubt that Cadence was absolutely everything to him.

After the movie finished Cadence sat up and looked at Cappie who had tears running down his cheeks.

"Daddy, why are you crying?" Cadence asked.

"I'm not crying," said Cappie as he quickly wiped the tears off his cheeks.

"Yes you were!" said Cadence knowing she had caught him. "I saw you!"

"Nah-uh," said Cappie playfully arguing back with her.

"Yes-huh," said Cadence back to him.

"OK, you got me," said Cappie with a smile. "I was crying."

"Why?" Cadence asked.

"Because the movie was sad," Cappie replied. "Bambi lost her mommy because of that mean man. That was sad."

Cadence suddenly got a worried look at her face.

"Am I going to lose my mommy?" she asked sadly.

"No, no, no, no," said Cappie pulling her close to him again. "Mommy is just away with Aunt Ashleigh for a few days. She'll be back tomorrow."

"Promise?" Cadence asked.

"I promise," Cappie replied.

"OK daddy, I love you," said Cadence as she snuggled closer into him.

"I love you too," Cappie replied. "You're my favorite little girl."

The two of them sat for a few minutes taking in the moment.

"So," said Cappie breaking the silence. "What do you think we should do now?"

"Change me," said Cadence as she sat up.

"Are you kidding me?" Cappie asked. "I just changed you a little over an hour ago."

"I wet," Cadence replied.

"Alright, that's it," said Cappie picking her up and setting her on the floor again to change her diaper. "You and I are going to the store."

"Why?" Cadence asked as she watched Cappie put the new diaper on her.

"Daddy is going to buy you a potty," said Cappie.

Cadence giggled. "Daddy I don't want a potty."

"Well you are costing me a fortune with all these diaper changes," said Cappie as he put her pants back on. "It's about time we start potty training."

"What is that?" Cadence asked.

"It's when you become a big girl and don't have to wear diapers anymore," said Cappie.

"I don't know about this daddy," said Cadence with hesitation.

"Trust me," said Cappie picking her up. "This will be good for all of us."

With that Cappie loaded her into the car seat and they were off to the baby store. When they arrived he put Cadence in the cart and began walking through the store.

"Oooo baby doll!" said Cadence reaching out and trying to grab a doll that they were walking by.

"No, we're not here for baby dolls," said Cappie searching the large store for the potty training section.

"But dadddyyyy," Cadence whined.

"No buts young lady," said Cappie. "We are here for potty training things only."

Cadence didn't reply as Cappie finally found the section he was looking for. He stood there for several minutes just staring at all of the little potty chairs they made for kids. The whole thing was a little overwhelming at the moment. But Cappie was soon saved by one of the workers at the store.

"Can I help you with something sir?" she asked.

"Yes, I'm looking into starting the potty training process," he replied. "The problem is that I'm not really sure where to start."

"Well I can help you with that," she replied. "I've put three kids through the potty training process. I think I know a thing or two. But you do know that potty training is a long process. It's not something that happens overnight."

"I know," Cappie replied. "I just need some help in how to get started."

"OK, first you're going to need a little potty because the regular one is going to be too big for her," said the sales lady. "I would recommend getting one that looks as close to the real commode as possible so when it's time to transition it will be easier."

"Good thinking," said Cappie. "Is there one you would pick over the others?"

"I used this model with my kids," she said picking up a yellow plastic potty chair. "It's got a lid and a pretend flusher like a real toilet has. And it fits over the toilet for a smaller fit when she gets to the point when she can use the real thing."

"Alright, that's great," said Cappie taking it and putting it in his cart. "Thanks so much for your help."

"Wait, you're not getting just that are you?" the sales lady asked.

Cappie stopped and turned around.

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"There is so much more that goes into this process than buying a small potty chair," she said. "You need to get books and pull-ups and underwear and some sort of small rewards for her for when she does use the potty chair."

Cappie looked at her with a deer in headlights expression.

"Come with me," she said. "I'll make sure you have everything you need."

With that Cappie followed the sales lady through several different parts of the store picking up all kinds of things needed for the potty training process. He had no idea so much was involved. He figured he would just sit Cadence on the plastic toilet and she would know just what to do. But the next thing he knew his cart was filled with potty training books, wipes, pull-ups, underwear and things called 'tinkle targets'.

"What are tinkle targets exactly?" Cappie asked as he examined the package.

"They are little foam things that give children something to aim for while they do their business in the bathroom," said the sales lady with a smile.

"Seriously?" Cappie asked with a small laugh.

The sales lady just shook her head yes as she led them towards the check-out area.

"Baby doll!" exclaimed Cadence again as they passed the row of dolls.

"Not today Cadence," said Cappie. "I've already spent more money here than I wanted to."

"Actually," said the sales lady with a little hesitation. "I don't want to push you anymore but there are some really good potty training dolls that may be helpful."

"Baby doll!" Cadence exclaimed again as she reached out for one of the dolls.

Cappie looked at Cadence and realized that he may be able to use the new doll as a reward for the potty training.

"Alright, show me what you have," he said reluctantly as he followed the sales lady down the aisle.

"This one is our best out the bunch," she said handing Cappie the doll. "She's able to tell the child that she has to go potty and even has her own potty that makes sounds when she is sat on it."

"Oooooo," said Cadence admiring the doll in Cappie's hands.

Cappie flipped the box around looking for the price. He immediately put the doll back on the shelf as soon as he saw the price.

"Something wrong with it?" the sales lady asked.

"Yeah, it's over two hundred dollars!" Cappie replied. "You would have to be an idiot to pay that kind of money for a doll."

"But this is the state of the art baby doll," the sales lady replied. "She's got a computer inside of her that programs her every action."

"I think I would rather buy a computer," said Cappie scanning the shelves at the rest of the dolls. "How about this one?" he asked picking up a doll that comes with a plastic toilet for her to use.

"That one doesn't make any sounds. It's just a doll and a pretend toilet," the sales lady replied.

"Do you like this one?" Cappie asked holding it up to Cadence.

"Yeah!" she replied looking at it.

"That's my girl," he said looking at the price. "Fifty bucks. I think we'll take this one."

He watched the sales lady look somewhat disappointed she couldn't sell him the very expensive doll but nonetheless she led them to the checkout line and went on her way. Cappie paid for the two-hundred dollars worth of stuff and loaded it into the car along with Cadence.

"Well that's done and over with," said Cappie as he buckled his seatbelt. "I think with the crazy morning we had cooking breakfast McDonalds sounds good for lunch. What do you think?"

"Yay! Happy Meal!" exclaimed Cadence.

"Happy meal it is then," said Cappie as he began driving to the McDonalds.

Once they arrived at the McDonalds Cappie ordered their food and made their way to the playland to eat so Cadence could play when she was done.

"Play now?" Cadence asked after she barely touched her food.

"No, not until you eat some more," Cappie replied.

Cadence sadly watched all the kids playing in the play area as she put another french fry in her mouth.

"Now?" she asked.

"No, you need to eat one more chicken nugget and a few more fries," Cappie replied.

"But dadddyyy," whined Cadence.

"No whining or I won't let you play at all," said Cappie.

Cadence grumbled as she took a bite of her chicken nugget. After a few more minutes she ate what Cappie had told her to and he allowed her to go into the playland. Cappie finished his own food and watched her play in the ball pit at first.

"Daddy look at me!" yelled Cadence as she jumped into the ball pit excitedly.

"Look at you go!" said Cappie smiling back at her.

"Cute little girl," said a younger woman sitting at the table next to Cappie. She looked to be in her early thirties with long brunette hair and a thin build.

"Thanks," Cappie replied. "She's certainly a bundle of energy."

"Oh I know," she replied. "I've got two of them running around in there myself."

Cappie just smiled back at her and turned to look at Cadence who was still in the ball pit.

"I'm Kim," she said extending her hand out to Cappie.

"Nice to meet you. I'm Cappie," he replied shaking her hand. "So which kids are yours?"

"You can't see them right now but I have two boys, one is five and the other is three," she replied. "How old is your little girl?"

"She's two," Cappie replied.

"Daddy look at me!" Cadence yelled as she peeked through one of the windows in the plastic playland.

"Be careful," said Cappie.

"I will," Cadence replied as she turned and continued to climb towards the top of the playland set.

"So do you live in the area?" Kim asked.

"Yeah," Cappie replied becoming a little uncomfortable with the small talk Kim was making with him.

"Daddy come here!" Cadence yelled from the top of the playland.

"I can't," Cappie yelled up to her. "The playland is just for kids. Not adults."

"But daddy I scared," whined Cadence.

"You're just fine," said Cappie. "Come down the slide and I'll be right there at the bottom."

"I can't," Cadence began to cry as Cappie stood up off his chair.

"Cadence I need you to be a big girl here," said Cappie somewhat nervous Cadence was stuck up in the playland. "Just come down the slide and I'll catch you."

"No! Help daddy!" said Cadence.

Cappie nervously looked around to try and figure out what to do. He went up to the opening of the playland to see if there was any way he could get up to the top to help her but the area was just too narrow for his six foot tall figure. He heard Cadence continue to cry at the top of the playland.

"Oh man," Cappie mumbled to himself.

"Let me help," said Kim as she stood up next to him. "Jacob come here!" she yelled.

Soon an older child came rushing down the slide and stood in front of Kim.

"What mom?" he asked.

"See that little girl up there?" she pointed to the top of the playland at Cadence. "She's afraid to come down the slide and her dad can't go up and get her. Can you help her down?"

"I'll see what I can do," he said as he entered the playland and began climbing up to where Cadence was.

Cappie and Kim watched as he talked with Cadence to try and get her to calm down and follow him out of the playland. It took a few tense moments but finally Cadence slowly followed Jacob back down the way she came up. Once she hit the ground she ran up to Cappie. Cappie picked her up in his arms.

"I was scared daddy," she cried into his shoulder.

"I know sweetheart," said Cappie rubbing her back. "You probably shouldn't have gone up that high."

Cadence just sniffled in his ear as Cappie turned to Kim and Jacob.

"Thank you guys so much," he said. "You really came to the rescue Jacob."

"You're welcome," said Jacob as he ran back into the playland.

"I'm just glad we could help," said Kim.

"I feel like I owe you guys something to thank you," said Cappie. "Can I buy you guys some ice cream or something?"

"No, we already had some," said Kim. "But if you want you guys could join us for dinner tonight. I'm making lasagna."

"Um, that sounds nice," Cappie hesitated. "But I'm happily married so I don't think it would be right."

"Oh," Kim replied. "I, uh, didn't see a ring on your finger so I assumed you were divorced or something like me."

"Wow, I didn't even realize I didn't put my wedding ring on this morning," said Cappie. "I'm sorry."

"No, it's OK," Kim replied. "I was probably a little too forward. You just seemed so nice and the way you interacted with your daughter was so sweet. I couldn't resist to at least try."

"Well, I'm flattered," said Cappie. "And I really do appreciate what you and your son did for me."

"You're welcome," said Kim who was pretty embarrassed at this point in time.

"We should probably get going," said Cappie who noticed Cadence was snuggling more into his shoulder. "She'll probably be fully asleep in a bit."

"OK," said Kim. "Nice meeting you."

"Nice meeting you too," said Cappie as he gathered his things and began walking out to the car.

He put Cadence in her car seat and drove back to the house. Once he got home he carried her up to her room and put her to bed. She had fallen asleep on the ride home and barely woke up as he tucked her into the bed for a nap.

Cappie went downstairs and collapsed onto the couch. All he wanted to do was take a nap himself but he knew there was still breakfast dishes in the sink to be cleaned, bags from the baby store to be carried in and laundry to be started. It was then he really grew appreciation for what Casey does during the day. Taking care of Cadence and the house was more of a full time job then he previously had thought. And he figured with the new baby on the way things would get even crazier and wondered how Casey would handle the extra work. He took a deep breath and slowly stood up off the couch. He didn't have any time to rest at the moment.

Cappie was just folding the last load of clothes when Cadence woke up about two hours later. He had gotten most of his tasks done, including looking for his wedding ring which for some reason he couldn't find and couldn't remember where he put it last. He figured it would show up eventually though and began working through his tasks. Cadence needed to be changed when she woke up so Cappie did that first.

"We're going to start trying something new right now," he said as he held up a pull-up to show Cadence.

"What's that?" she asked.

"It's called a pull-up," Cappie replied. "It's like underwear that you can pull up and down but also is like a diaper in case you don't make it to the potty in time."

"I use potty now?" Cadence asked.

"You have your special potty that daddy bought for you today," said Cappie. "You just need to tell me when you have to go potty and I will help you."

Cadence just looked up at Cappie blankly. He wasn't really sure if she understood what he was trying to tell her but he figured there was no time like the present to start the potty training. Cappie finished getting her dressed and the two of them went downstairs. Cadence immediately found the doll Cappie had bought her at the store and began playing with it. She then noticed the package of princess underwear he also bought sitting next to it.

"What's this?" she asked holding it up to Cappie.

"Those are the big girl underwear with the princesses on them," said Cappie.

"I wear now?" Cadence asked.

"No, you have to get better with using the potty before you can wear those," Cappie replied.

"Oh," said Cadence sadly as she put the package down and went back to playing with her doll.

For the next hour Cappie sat on the floor with Cadence playing with her dolls and various other toys she got out to play with.

"Cadence do you have to go potty?" Cappie asked.

"No," Cadence shook her head.

"Why don't you just sit on the potty and try?" Cappie asked.

"But I play," Cadence whined.

"Come on," said Cappie taking her hand. "It won't take too long."

Cadence reluctantly stood up and walked with Cappie into the downstairs bathroom where he had set her plastic potty next to the real one. He helped Cadence pull down her pants and pull-up and she sat down on the toilet.

"Now what?" Cadence asked.

"Well now we wait a few minutes," said Cappie. "We need to wait and see if you can go."

Cadence sat there for the next several minutes just looking at several things around the bathroom and humming to herself. Cappie eventually put the lid down on the toilet and sat on it waiting for something to happen. During her nap Cappie did some research on potty training on the internet and it said this was the first step in starting the process.

Another few minutes went by and Cadence was becoming more and more impatient.

"Daddy I want to go play," she said.

"Did you go potty at all?" Cappie asked.

"No," Cadence shook her head.

"Alright," said Cappie standing her up. "I guess we'll try again in another hour."

Cappie pulled up her pants and the two of them returned to the living room to continue playing with the toys. About twenty minutes later Cadence walked up to Cappie.

"Daddy change," she said.

"What? You were supposed to tell me when you had to go potty," said Cappie. "That way you could go in the toilet."

"Sorry," said Cadence.

Cappie reluctantly set Cadence in her usual spot and changed her into another pull-up.

"Alright, next time you have to go you need to tell me," said Cappie as he finished changing her.

Over the next hour Cappie and Cadence went out to the backyard and chased each other around and swung on the porch swing. Cappie asked her just about every five to ten minutes if she had to go to the bathroom and Cadence continued to say no. Finally he decided it was time to try sitting her on the toilet again. So they went inside and each sat on a toilet just as they had done before.

"Daddy I bored," said Cadence after a few minutes.

"Here, read this," said Cappie pulling a magazine out of the basket next to the toilet.

Cadence giggled. "Daddy I can't read," she said.

"Well just look at the picture then," said Cappie becoming a little impatient that this whole potty training thing wasn't happening as quickly as he wanted it to.

Cadence quickly flipped through the magazine looking at the pictures when all of a sudden she gasped. She quickly stood up off of the toilet and looked inside.

"Look daddy!" she exclaimed pointing to the inside of the toilet.

Cappie looked inside to see a few drops of urine in the bottom of the bucket.

"I did it!" Cadence exclaimed.

"You sure did!" Cappie exclaimed back as excited as he could get over a few drops of urine that was actually in the plastic bucket. "Give me five!"

Cadence excitedly gave him a high five but that didn't last long as a sudden sad look overcame her face. She and Cappie looked down at the same time to see urine now flowing down her legs and onto the floor.

"Uh oh," said Cadence.

"Aw man," said Cappie with frustration. "How come you couldn't sit back down on the potty to do that?"

"I don't know," said Cadence who was now on the verge of tears.

"It's OK," said Cappie as he began to wipe up the floor. "Let's go take a bath and get cleaned up."

He picked Cadence up holding her out as far away from his body as he possibly could and carried her upstairs to the shower.

Cadence had a defeated expression on her face the rest of the night. After her bath Cappie just went ahead and put a diaper back on her deciding that she had had enough for one day of potty training. He made a pizza in the oven for dinner and the two of them relaxed and watched some cartoons for the rest of the night until it was time for Cadence to go to bed.

"Daddy," said Cadence sadly as he tucked her in. "I sorry I peed."

"It's alright sweetheart," said Cappie as he knelt down next to her. "Potty training is not easy. I think you did just fine for you first day."

"I did?" Cadence asked.

"Yeah, you did," Cappie replied. "And tomorrow is a brand new day to try again. Plus mommy will be home tomorrow night and she can help out too."

"I miss mommy," said Cadence sadly.

"I do too," Cappie replied. "But we'll see her again soon."

"OK," said Cadence. "Goodnight daddy."

"Goodnight," said Cappie as he kissed her on the cheek and left the room.

The next morning went much smoother for Cappie than the previous morning did. He was able to start the day off right by heating up the rest of the pancakes Casey had cooked for them in the microwave. After breakfast he changed Cadence into her pull-up for the day and said a silent prayer for a better potty training day than yesterday. Unfortunately the morning didn't go so well and Cadence had two different accidents in her pull-ups and still had yet to go in the actual toilet. Cappie could see that she was really trying and the hurt expression on her face each time she failed made him wonder if she was even ready to start the potty training process now.

After Cadence woke up from her nap Beaver came over for a bit to hang out.

"So how's the life of the stay-at-home mom?" Beaver asked as he sat next to Cappie at the kitchen table.

"It sucks," Cappie replied. "I swear I turn around and there is something else I have to do. Rest breaks are few and far between that's for sure."

"It'll probably be even worse with two kids," said Beaver with a sigh.

"Yeah, I sure have a new found respect for Casey and all that she does during the day," said Cappie.

"Daddy potty," said Cadence interrupting their conversation.

"Whoa," said Cappie taken by surprise. "Hurry up, let's go!" he said as he rushed into the bathroom with Cadence.

"What in the heck is going on?" Beaver asked as he followed them into the bathroom.

"Cadence is learning how to use the toilet," said Cappie as he helped her pull down her pants and sit on the potty.

"Um, don't you think that's quite a task for you to be doing with her by yourself?" Beaver asked.

"Yeah," Cappie replied bluntly. "But we're just getting started. I'm sure things will move a little smoother once Casey gets back."

Cadence began to hum to herself again as she sat on the potty.

"Uncle Beaver and I will give you a little privacy," said Cappie. "We'll just be right outside the door. Call me when you're ready."

"OK," said Cadence.

Cappie and Beaver walked out into the hall outside the bathroom.

"This is the first time she's actually came to me and said that she's had to use the bathroom," said Cappie. "I'm hoping this is a big step towards getting things right."

"Have I told you how I think you're absolutely crazy for doing this?" Beaver asked with a small laugh.

"I had a feeling," said Cappie with a small chuckle. "I just never realized how many diapers we were going through changing her like every couple of hours. So I figured there was no time like the present to start."

"Daddy I'm done!" said Cadence.

"Excuse me," said Cappie as he walked back into the bathroom.

Cadence stood up as he walked in and smiled as she looked into the potty.

"Look!" she said as she pointed to the large amount of urine in the bucket this time around. "I did better daddy!"

"You sure did!" said Cappie in a much more excited tone this time compared to the last time and giving her another high five.

Cappie dumped the contents of the smaller toilet into the bigger one and let Cadence flush it. She stood and watched the water circle around with a very proud look on her face. He then helped her wash her hands at the sink.

"Look daddy, your ring," said Cadence as she pointed to Cappie's wedding ring sitting next to the sink.

"There it is," said Cappie. "I've been looking all over for that thing."

Cadence reached up to get the ring and the next thing Cappie knew it fell into the sink.

"NO!" he yelled trying to save the ring from going down the drain.

But he wasn't able to stop it. The ring went down the drain. Cappie immediately turned the water off and looked down into the drain.

"Uh oh daddy," said Cadence realizing that something bad just happened.

"Everything OK in there?" Beaver asked as he came to the door.

"No, everything is not OK. Everything is just a big mess," said Cappie as he opened the doors underneath the sink to get to the pipes. "My wedding ring just went down the drain."

"Uh oh," said Beaver sounding just like Cadence.

Beaver and Cadence exchanged worried looks as Cappie began pulling things out from under the sink to get to the pipes.

"Can I help you with anything?" Beaver asked.

"A wrench," said Cappie. "I need a wrench to get this pipe off to see if I can find my ring."

"Right on it," said Beaver as he ran to the garage and searched through the tools for a wrench.

He came back a minute later and handed it to Cappie.

"Can I help?" Cadence asked.

"Not now sweetheart," said Cappie. "Daddy is kind of in a panic right now."

"Cap, shouldn't you like turn off the water or something before doing that?" Beaver asked.

"I don't know, I'm not a plumber," said Cappie. "I'm just trying to get my ring back."

"Well I just wanted to make sure we all didn't get soaked once you started unscrewing things under there you're probably not supposed to be unscrewing," said Beaver.

Cappie sighed as he found a knob near the pipes to turn off the water.

"Alright, I think it's off," he said as he began to adjust the wrench around the pipe.

"Come on Cadence," said Beaver taking her out of the bathroom. "I think it would be best if the two of us just stay out of daddy's way for right now."

"But I can help," whined Cadence as Beaver pulled her away.

After they left, Cappie frantically worked on getting the pipe off saying several silent prayers that the ring was still in the bottom of the pipe. He got one end of the pipe undone and had some water spray out at him but nothing he couldn't deal with. It was just water that was left in the pipe. He finally got the other end of the pipe off and shook it to try and get the ring out. And suddenly, like a miracle, it came rolling out and into his hand.

"Oh thank god," he said with a sigh of relief.

"Did you get it?" Beaver asked from the kitchen.

"Yeah," said Cappie standing up and walking out to the kitchen. "That was a close one."

"I'm sorry daddy," said Cadence.

"It's alright," Cappie replied. "You were just trying to help. I know you didn't mean for my ring to go down the drain."

"I guess that'll teach you to never take that thing off huh?" Beaver asked.

"I can't believe I've gone almost two days not even noticing I didn't have it on," said Cappie.

"At least you got it back. That's the most important thing," said Beaver.

"Yes, that's true," Cappie replied.

"I did good going potty!" exclaimed Cadence.

"Yes you did," said Cappie turning to look at Cadence and smiling. "And since you did such a good job how about we go with Uncle Beaver and get some ice cream?" Cappie asked.

"Yes!" Cadence exclaimed as she went running towards the door.

Beaver went back home after the three of them had some dinner and ice cream. When they got home from their outing Cadence successfully used the potty again and Cappie couldn't have been prouder of her.

Cadence insisted in trying to stay up until Casey got home later that night so she could tell her the good news and see Casey before she went to bed. But as the hours ticked away Cadence became more and more tired. And the more tired she got the more careless she was with trying to go to the bathroom. She had another accident right before Cappie was about the put her to bed. When he went to change her he reached for a diaper but she insisted she wanted to have another pull-up on so she could show Casey when she got home. So Cappie put a pull-up on her along with a nightshirt and the two of them continued to wait for Casey to get home.

It was around midnight when Ashleigh finally dropped Casey off in the driveway. Casey said goodbye to her quickly and ran inside as she really had to use the bathroom. But when she hurried into the downstairs bathroom she almost fell on her face tripping over the plastic toilet that was now in there and the pipe to the sink still in the middle of the floor. She picked the pipe up and looked at it as she used the bathroom herself. Seeing it and the small potty really made her confused and she wondered what in the heck Cappie and Cadence were up to for the weekend. She finished going to the bathroom and walked into the living room to find her two favorite people in the recliner chair asleep. Cappie was softly snoring as Cadence laid right on his chest fast asleep herself. As Casey approached them she looked at Cadence's diaper as her nightshirt was exposing it to see that it wasn't actually a diaper but a pull-up instead.

"What is going on here?" Casey whispered to herself.

She sat down on the armrest of the chair and began running her hand through Cappie's hair trying to gently wake him up. He was startled when he first woke up but instantly smiled as soon as he saw Casey.

"Hey you," he said softly. "We tried to wait up for you. But I guess we didn't make it."

"It's alright," said Casey. "I'll take her up to bed if you want."

"Nah, I got her," said Cappie. "You just go get ready for bed and I'll meet you in there."

"OK," said Casey as she gave Cadence a soft kiss on the cheek.

Cappie carried Cadence upstairs with Casey following closely behind. He put her down in her bed without her even stirring and made his way into the bedroom. Casey was just finishing putting her pajamas on when he came up from behind her and wrapped his arms around her.

"I missed you so incredibly much," he whispered into her ear.

"And I missed you to," said Casey as she turned in his arms and kissed him on the lips.

"Come on, let's get in bed," said Cappie letting her go and getting into bed.

Casey crawled in next to him and laid her head down on his shoulder.

"Cap," she said after a few moments of silence.

"Yes," Cappie replied.

"What in the hell went on here this weekend?" she asked very bluntly.

Cappie chuckled as he kissed her on the forehead.

"It's late," he said softly. "Let's go to sleep and I'll tell you all about it in the morning."

Casey was about to protest and tell Cappie to tell her everything now when she yawned and realized how tired she actually was.

"Alright," she said with a sigh. "I'll let you off the hook for now. But I expect details in the morning."

"Believe me," said Cappie. "With everything that happened there is more than enough to tell."

With that Cappie wrapped his arms around her tighter as they both drifted into a deep sleep.

* * *

_**A/N: Hey everyone! Sorry for the long delay in updating again. With all the crazy things that happened in this chapter it took me a little longer to write. Plus the chapter itself is pretty long. Anyways, hope you liked it!**_

_**Wanted to let you all know that it may be close to another two or three weeks before I'll probably get the next chapter up because next week I'm going to California to visit the set of GREEK! The creator invited me and Elissa who worked on the savegreek campaign out to Cali to meet everyone and watch the show be taped and things to thank us for helping get the show a 4th season. So even though I won't be writing my Greek story I'll still be doing things Greek...LoL! I'm hoping this will be a good enough excuse for you all in not updating for a little while ;0)**_

_**Also, to the person who asked me to write a Ashleigh/Beaver story, I would be happy to write something up. I'm not sure if it will be very long, maybe a couple of chapters but I was wondering if you had any ideas for the story. Do you want one showing them getting together as a couple? Already as a couple? Still in college? Or graduated? Let me know what you think and I'll see what I can do.**_

_**Alright, that is all for now. Wish me luck in California! **_


	135. Desperate Times

DESPERATE TIMES

The holidays came and went quickly for the Cappington family. Christmas this year was very special as Cadence was older and able to understand more of what Christmas was all about. Casey and Cappie took her to see Santa and she was able to tell him all of the presents she wanted for Christmas. She was so excited that she woke her parents up at five in the morning so they could go downstairs and open presents. For Christmas she got several new toys, baby dolls and a wagon to ride in when she went on walks around the block with her parents.

Cappie and Casey invited all of their friends to their house for a New Year's party. Casey's parents watched Cadence giving the couple time to spend with their friends and enjoy the evening. Ashleigh and Casey of course could not drink any alcohol but they still had a great time just spending time with their closest friends and catching up on things going on in their lives.

A week after the New Year Cappie and Beaver finally reached their goal of getting the restaurant that had burned down open again. Tonight was the grand opening and everyone was at the restaurant putting together the finishing touches.

"Watch out! Wide load coming through!" announced Beaver as he and Ashleigh walked out into the dining room where Casey and Cappie were wrapping silverware.

"Ha. Ha. Very funny," said Ashleigh sarcastically as she slowly wobbled her way over to the table and sat down next to Casey.

"Ash, I swear you have grown another ten inches in the past couple of days," said Casey with a laugh.

"Tell me about it," said Ashleigh with a sigh. "I also haven't gotten much sleep in the past few days. These two are fighting like cats and dogs in my stomach. I'll be just about asleep when I'll get a hard smack on my rib or something and it hurts."

"Yeah, and I've lost just about as much sleep as she has," said Beaver sitting down next to Ashleigh. "Every time she feels that pain she makes sure to let me know too."

Ashleigh glared at Beaver.

"You try being pregnant with two babies and see how this feels," she said. "I'm about to get you one of those pregnant suits men wear so they can understand what their wife is going through."

"That's quite alright," said Beaver rolling his eyes at Ashleigh. "Just give me my sleep back and I'll be just fine."

"Well, you guys think sleep is far to come by now, just think of how it's going to be once the babies are born," said Cappie. "I hardly got any sleep with one baby. I imagine it's going to be twice as bad with two."

"Thanks Cap, you're so encouraging," said Beaver sarcastically.

"So how are you feeling Case?" Ashleigh asked trying to divert the baby discussion away from her.

"I'm just fine," said Casey. "This baby actually is moving less than Cadence did. Maybe it's a difference between boys and girls."

"Have you guys picked a name yet?" Beaver asked.

"We have," said Cappie turning and smiling at Casey.

"Oh! What is it?" Ashleigh asked excitedly.

"We'll tell you if you tell us what you're going to name your babies," said Casey. She had been trying to get Ashleigh to tell her the names for the past month but Ashleigh wasn't budging.

"You know I'm not saying a word until the babies are born," said Ashleigh. "You guys made us wait with Cadence so we can make you wait now."

"Fine," Casey sighed. "I guess we will all just have to wait to find out until our babies are born."

Cappie was about to speak when Mr. Shultz walked into the restaurant.

"Mr. Shultz!" said Beaver standing up and walking over to him. "What can I do for you?"

"I just wanted to stop by and see how the money I have invested is getting put to good use," he replied looking around the dining area.

"We're really excited to get the place open today," said Cappie also standing up and walking over to Mr. Shultz. "In just a few hours this place should be packed with people."

"I have no doubt about that with the short line that's already forming outside," said Mr. Shultz with a smile. "I love what you guys have done with the place. You can't even tell there was a devastating fire here just a few months ago."

"Yeah, we've worked really hard getting things back in order," said Beaver.

"Well I won't keep you boys any longer," said Mr. Shultz. "I'll be back later for dinner."

"Oh, sounds great," Cappie said somewhat surprised. He didn't know Mr. Shultz was planning on coming in for dinner.

"All twenty of us are hard to handle," said Mr. Shultz with a laugh. "But I'm sure you guys will do just fine."

"Um, twenty?" Beaver asked with a gulp.

"Yeah, didn't you get my e-mail?" Mr. Shultz asked.

"Oh, yeah, of course," said Beaver nervously even though he had no clue what Mr. Shultz was talking about. "I thought it was fifteen people, not twenty."

"No, I'm pretty sure I said twenty," Mr. Shultz replied.

"Well, anyway, we will be ready for you guys," said Cappie trying to get Mr. Shultz to leave so he and Beaver could panic about the suddenly large party they were going to have tonight.

"Can you confirm what time you'll be here?" Beaver asked.

"Six-thirty," Mr. Shultz replied. "I believe I said that in the e-mail too."

"I know," Beaver lied. "I was just confirming to make sure that was still the plan."

"OK, see you boys in a few hours," said Mr. Shultz as he walked out the door.

As soon as the door shut Cappie and Beaver looked at each other with panicked looks on their faces.

"Did you not check your e-mail?" Cappie asked.

"I thought I did," Beaver replied. "I really have no idea what he is talking about."

"How in the hell are we supposed to accommodate a party of twenty along with the hundreds of other people that were planning on eating here tonight?" Cappie asked. "I don't think we even have enough staff to cover a big party like that."

"This is a disaster!" Beaver whined.

"OK, everyone just calm down for a second," said Casey standing up. "What we can do is open at four like we were planning and have people sit at the tables in the back to start off with. Then, near six o'clock, we can start leaving those tables empty and put them together to make one long table for the twenty people that are coming."

"I just hate doing this to our customers," said Cappie. "I've gotten several calls all week from people wanting to make a reservation and I've stressed to everyone that we don't take reservations. So how are they going to feel when this party of twenty is suddenly taking up several tables and walks in and gets right in?"

"I really don't think this is going to be an issue," said Ashleigh. "But if people get mad just tell them that the party came at like five to put their name in and it's just their turn to be seated."

"I sure hope you're right," said Beaver with a sigh as he walked back to the office area.

The restaurant opened at four as planned with a line of people anxiously waiting to be seated to get in. From four to six they had a steady stream of people with no one really waiting more than a half an hour for a table. But at six the dinner rush started and things began to get a little chaotic. Cappie and Beaver put Casey and Ashleigh in charge of making sure the tables in the back of the restaurant were clear by six-thirty for Mr. Shultz. They had successfully got all the tables cleared but one. There was a couple sitting at the remaining table who had been there since the restaurant opened. They were finished eating but kept ordering drinks as they sat and talked.

"What are we going to do?" Ashleigh whispered to Casey as the two of them stared at the couple at the table from the other side of the room.

"I'm not sure," said Casey biting her nail. "I just know that we need that table."

"Are you allowed to ask people to leave?" Ashleigh asked.

"If they are just sitting there and talking while others are waiting then I would say yes," Casey replied. "But they just ordered dessert and another bottle of wine since they finished the one they had ordered with their meal so you can't really ask them to leave if they are still purchasing things I guess."

The girls continued to stand there and stare at the couple when Beaver came over to them.

"What's going on with that last table?" he asked. "Mr. Shultz and his family are going to be here in like five minutes."

"Those people just won't leave!" said Ashleigh. "Casey and I don't know what to do."

"Beave, how about we move them to a different table or booth?" Casey asked.

"Do you honestly think we have an open table to put them at?" Beaver asked as he looked at the packed dining room and several people by the front door waiting to be seated.

"Yeah, probably not," Casey sighed.

"I just saw Mr. Shultz and his family out in the parking lot," said Cappie joining them. "Are we going to be able to get rid of the people at that table?"

"We're working on it," said Ashleigh in a frustrated voice.

"I know!" said Beaver struck by an idea. "Ash, why don't you walk up to them and ask how things are and then accidently knock over their bottle of wine with your huge stomach so they're forced to leave."

The three of them looked at Beaver and gave him dumbfounded looks.

"What?" Beaver asked.

"That's a horrible thing to do!" said Ashleigh.

"Desperate times call for desperate measures," said Beaver as he saw Mr. Shultz walking in the front door and quickly walked over to talk with him.

"Please tell me he wasn't serious about that," said Casey.

"He looked pretty serious," said Cappie shrugging his shoulders.

"This is insane," said Ashleigh. "No way, no how am I doing that."

Cappie turned and saw the worried look on Beaver's face trying to keep Mr. Shultz and his family as occupied as he could for the time being.

"Mr. Shultz is one of our top investors," said Cappie. "And if he's not happy then we don't get his money. If we don't get his money then we're going to have a hard time paying for all the repairs we did here and possibly opening up other locations in the future. Desperate times call for desperate measures."

"Oh god no you too," said Ashleigh.

"We just have no other choice. Case, you go with her," said Cappie as he went off to help Beaver distract Mr. Shultz.

"Let's do this," said Casey softly as she began to walk towards the table.

"Hold up," said Ashleigh grabbing her arm. "You can't be serious."

"We have to do this and you have to come with me," said Casey. "Your baby bump is bigger than mine and will reach farther on the table."

"Oh lord," said Ashleigh with a sigh. "Can't we at least just ask them to leave first? I really don't feel like dumping a bottle of wine on a nice lady at the moment."

"Alright, we'll try that first," said Casey as her and Ashleigh walked up to the couple sitting at the table.

"Good evening," said Casey with her million dollar smile. "How is everything tonight?"

"It's OK," was all the woman at the table replied.

"Um, how about you sir?" Casey asked trying to keep the conversation going since the lady didn't offer any hopes of continuing.

"It was OK," was all he replied too.

Casey looked at Ashleigh who just slightly shrugged her shoulder. She didn't know what to say at the moment either.

"Well, I don't know if you two noticed or not but we are pretty busy tonight," said Casey trying to sound as nice as possible.

"Yeah, we noticed," said the woman in a rather snooty tone.

Casey was a little taken back in how this woman was responding to her.

"Anyway," she continued. "I was wondering if the two of you could wrap things up soon so we can use this table for other customers."

"We are paying customers," said the woman in more of an angry tone now. "You can't just ask us to leave."

"I know," said Casey. "I'm just asking you politely to think of the other people who have been waiting for hours to get a table."

Casey looked to Ashleigh again for a little help. This time Ashleigh offered some assistance.

"We can wrap up the wine and put your dessert in a box so you can take it home and have it later," Ashleigh added.

"I find it awfully rude that you are asking us to leave," said the woman. "And quite frankly I'm not going anywhere."

Casey turned to look at Cappie and Beaver anxiously staring at her and giving her pleading looks to free the table.

"You could go and sit at the bar," said Ashleigh pointing to the bar area. "There are a couple of stools you two can sit on and talk the entire night long if you want."

"I don't want to sit at the bar," the woman replied. "Now will the two of you leave us alone? And send our waitress over so we can order more drinks."

The woman then turned to resume her conversation with the gentleman she was with. Casey took this opportunity to glance at the open bottle of wine at the edge of the table and then back up at Ashleigh. Ashleigh hesitated for a few seconds but when she turned and saw the anxious look on Beaver's face she knew she had to do what she had to do.

"Well enjoy the rest of your night," said Ashleigh. "We will be leaving you now."

"Goodbye," the woman stated without even looking at the two girls.

The woman's attitude, along with Beaver's pleading look gave Ashleigh the guts she needed to complete her mission. And as she turned to walk back towards the kitchen area she made sure to stretch her stomach as far into the table as she could and knocked the bottle of red wine over and into the woman's lap.

The woman gasped and stood up right away, grabbing napkins to wipe the liquid off of the yellow suit she was wearing.

"Oh my gosh!" Ashleigh stated as sincerely as she could. "I am so sorry."

"This is a custom made suit!" the woman exclaimed. "The red wine will never come out!"

"I am very sorry," Ashleigh said again. "I can pay you for a new one. My stomach just seems to be getting in the way a lot more lately."

"That's why you should be home and in bed," said the woman angrily. "Not working here."

It took Ashleigh everything she had to not reach her arm back and swing at this woman's face as hard as she could for her rude comments. Instead she took a deep breath and continued playing as if what happened was an accident.

"My husband is the owner, we will pay for whatever damages there are," said Ashleigh.

"You're damn right you will," she said throwing the napkins on the table and grabbing her purse.

"Come on Greg," she said to the gentleman she was with. "These two ladies successfully ruined our night. Let's get out of here."

Casey and Ashleigh watched as Greg took a one hundred dollar bill out of his wallet and put it down on the table.

"That should take care of the bill and a tip for our waitress," he said softly. "I'm sorry about my wife. She's a little high strung."

"Don't apologize to them Greg!" shouted the woman. "They ruined my suit!"

"Again, I'm very sorry," said Ashleigh to the nicer man. "Let me know if you need compensated for the suit or not."

"Thank you," he said as he walked out of the restaurant following his wife stomping her feet the entire way.

"I can't believe that worked," said Casey as she motioned for one of the bus boys to clean off the table.

"I can't believe I actually did that," said Ashleigh.

"Well, as we said desperate ti—"

"Please, don't tell me that again," said Ashleigh interrupting her.

Casey let out a small laugh as the two girls walked back to the office, proud of their accomplishment for the evening.

The rest of the evening went by much smoother. Mr. Shultz and his party of twenty were very satisfied with the food and the service. Casey and Ashleigh helped the two waitresses taking care of the large party as much as they could so things could run as smooth as possible.

It was around one in the morning when the cleaning was done, the money was counted and the rest of the crew had left the restaurant. All four of them sat at the same table in the dining room as they had earlier in the day to reflect on the evening.

"Man, I forgot how stressful grand openings can be," said Cappie as he slouched down in his seat. At this point his tie was untied and draped around his neck and he had a ring of sweat around his collar from all the running around he had done for the night.

"Tell me about it," said Beaver who looked just about as worn out as Cappie. "But I'm glad the only major problem we had was that couple who didn't want to leave."

"I can't believe how rude that woman was," said Casey. "She really wasn't going to leave and she told Ashleigh she belonged at home and not here working. I'm surprised you didn't punch her right then and there Ash."

"Oh believe me, I wanted to," said Ashleigh. "But it helped in the end that her husband was at least a little nicer and understanding."

"You are a saint for doing what you did Ash," said Beaver as he rubbed her back with his right hand. "I was really just joking when I said to pour the wine on her."

"Are you kidding me?" Ashleigh asked as she glared at Beaver.

Beaver let out a small laugh. "OK, well, maybe secretly I thought it would be a good plan," he said. "But I really didn't think you would do it."

"With the way that lady was mouthing off to us I really didn't feel bad for doing it at that point," said Ashleigh. "It would have been harder to do if she was nicer."

The four of them sat in silence for a bit.

"Oh man, look at how swollen my feet are," said Casey as she lifted one of her feet up and set it in Cappie's lap.

"I supposed that is your way of asking for a foot massage?" Cappie asked.

"That sounds sooooo good right now," said Ashleigh as she turned to Beaver.

Beaver turned to glare at Cappie this time.

"You just had to open your big mouth," he said with a sigh.

"Hey just think, only a few more weeks and your babies will be here and you won't have to worry about it anymore," said Cappie.

"I guess you're right," said Beaver.

"Why don't we just go home so we're not receiving foot massages in the middle of the restaurant?" said Casey with a small laugh.

"That sounds like a good idea," Ashleigh replied as she took Beaver's hand to help her stand up.

Casey put her leg back on the ground and put her shoe back on. She grabbed Cappie's hand that he had reached towards her to help her stand up. But as soon as she stood up the room began to spin.

"Whoa," she said falling back down into the chair.

"What's going on?" Cappie asked in a very concerned voice.

"I just got really dizzy when I stood up," said Casey rubbing her forehead.

"I'll go get you a glass of water," said Beaver as he ran back to the kitchen.

"Did you feel like you were going to pass out?" Ashleigh asked.

"No," Casey replied. "The room just started to spin as I stood up and I just sat back down so it didn't get any worse."

"And it went away?" Cappie asked.

"Yeah, for the most part," said Casey. "I still feel a little lightheaded but the room isn't spinning anymore."

"Here, drink this," said Beaver as he returned and handed Casey the glass of water.

"I'm worried," said Cappie as he watched Casey take a sip of the water. "I think we should take you to the hospital."

"No, no," said Casey brushing him off. "It's not a big deal. I haven't really eaten much tonight so I'm probably just a little weak and dehydrated that's all."

Cappie continued to look at her with a very worried look on his face.

"Cap, I'm fine," said Casey rubbing his hand.

"After everything we've been through Case I just don't want to take any chances," said Cappie.

"I understand," said Casey. "And I would tell you if I felt something was wrong with the baby but everything feels just fine. It was just a little dizzy spell and I'm fine now."

Casey set the glass of water down on the table and slowly made her way into a standing position.

"See," she said trying to reassure Cappie. "I must have just stood up too fast before. I'm fine now."

"Are you sure?" Ashleigh asked.

"Yes, I'm sure," said Casey becoming a little annoyed with everyone being so worried about her. "Now let's all go home and forget that even happened."

Casey watched as everyone hesitated a little bit to actually leave. But finally Ashleigh walked up towards her.

"You have a good night," said Ashleigh giving Casey a hug. "I'll call you tomorrow but let me know if anything else happens."

"I'll be fine," Casey assured her. "I have to get Cadence from my parent's house sometime in the early afternoon tomorrow and I could swing by your house afterwards if you want."

"That sounds good," Ashleigh replied. "Goodnight."

"Goodnight guys," said Cappie as he took Casey's hand and led her out to the car.

Cappie helped Casey in the passenger seat and then got into the driver's seat himself. He started the car and then sighed as he looked over at Casey.

"Are you really sure you're alright?" he asked.

"Honey, I'm fine," said Casey putting her hand on his cheek. "Let's go home and get some sleep and I'm sure I'll be fine in the morning."

Cappie stared in her eyes a few seconds longer, trying his best to believe that everything was OK. Casey leaned over and gave him a soft kiss on the lips.

"Alright," he said reluctantly as she pulled away. "But you will let me know if anything feels weird or changes or anything OK?"

"I promise I'll let you know," said Casey as Cappie finally put the car in drive and headed home.

* * *

_**A/N: Hey everyone! I'm back! I had such a great time visiting the Greek set. They took us on a tour and got to see all the sets like the KT backyard, the ZBZ dining room and the Omega Chi living room. It was really neat to see that the sets were actually a lot smaller in person than they are on the TV. I guess they use a type of camera lens or angle that actually makes it look bigger. Anyway, we got to meet Sean Smith the creator and sit and talk with him about the show which was really cool. We also got to have lunch with Lloyd Segan who is the executive producer of the show and quite possibly the nicest man alive! LoL! He gave us Greek presents which was such nice of him :0) We didn't get to meet the whole cast unfortunately because they only have the actors there who are filming for the day. But we did get to meet Scott, Spencer, Paul and Jacob and they were all so nice and appreciative that they got another 10 episodes for the show which was cool. Clarke was there too but he ran off set before we could track him down to meet him :0( I guess that's about all I can say about the trip for now. We did get to watch several scenes from one of the episodes for the new season be shot but my lips are sealed...don't want to give away any spoilers! LoL! But we did see some funny stuff so I'm sure everyone will like the 10 new episodes. Now if we can just find out when it's going to come back on huh? Unfortunately no one at the show really knows when the new season is going to start either so we're all waiting in limbo for the time being I guess.**_

_**Hope you guys enjoyed the new chapter...sorry it was a little shorter than what I have been writing but I wanted to get something posted since you guys haven't had anything to read from this story for a while.**_

_**Oh and also wanted to personally thank MJ for your comment...it really totally made my day! I got the comment from 'anon' while I was in LA and it kind of put me down about this story because I understood where he/she was coming from but your comment made me realize that there are a lot more people who read this story and really like it so that's what keeps me going and writing so thank you so much for lifting my spirits :0)**_


	136. Angel From Above

ANGEL FROM ABOVE

Cappie had a hard time sleeping that night. The incident Casey had with the dizzy spell at the restaurant had him worried. He woke up several times during the night just to make sure she was still breathing. He would also put his hand on her stomach to make sure the baby was still moving. There was just something about what happened that didn't seem right. But at the same time he had to respect what his wife was telling him. With everything Casey has been through with pregnancies she should really know if something was wrong with her or the baby. Still, he just couldn't help but worry.

Casey, on the other hand, slept very well that night. She thought just the exhaustion of a long day at the restaurant caused her to sleep well. In the back of her mind she too was worried about the incident she had. But she truly didn't see it being a big deal. Once she sat down and had some water all of her symptoms went away and they didn't come back for the rest of the night.

Casey turned in bed this next morning towards Cappie. He was sound asleep and she didn't want to wake him. She sat up in bed and began to feel that same dizzy feeling again. She sat on the edge of the bed for a couple of minutes and eventually it went away. She then attempted to stand up and the same thing happened again and she quickly sat back down. Something wasn't right and she began to worry. She sat for another couple of minutes taking some deep breaths and then stood up again. This time she felt just a little dizziness that went away after she stood for a few seconds. The entire thing was confusing to her. She couldn't understand why she felt like this but just as quickly as the dizziness came on it went away.

Still not wanting to wake Cappie she made her way downstairs and got a glass of milk out of the refrigerator. She sat down at the kitchen table and felt the overwhelming urge to want to talk to someone. So she called Ashleigh.

"Hello," said Ashleigh answering the phone.

"Hey Ash, how are you?" Casey asked with a sigh.

"I'm fine," Ashleigh replied. "But you don't sound so good. What is going on?"

"I'm a little scared," Casey replied. "I got that dizzy feeling like three more times when I woke up this morning. It went away quickly but it's still got me a little worried."

"Case, this is something you really shouldn't mess around with," said Ashleigh. "I would call Dr. Snyder and see if you can get in to see her. And if you can't, you really should go to the hospital or something to get checked out. You're making me worried now too."

"I just don't want to go through all of that and find that it's really nothing though," said Casey. "Maybe it happens when I haven't eaten for a while."

"The doctor did tell me that you can get diabetes while you're pregnant," said Ashleigh. "Maybe you're getting dizzy because your blood sugar is low."

"I doubt it," Casey replied. "Dr. Snyder had me go for the diabetes test at my last appointment a few weeks ago and it was negative."

"That doesn't mean that you can't have it now though," Ashleigh replied.

Casey took a deep breath in and out as she rested her arms on the table.

"What does Cappie say?" Ashleigh asked.

"He's still sleeping," Casey replied. "I haven't told him yet and I'm sure as soon as I do he's going to rush me off to the emergency room as fast as he can."

"He's just protecting you, you know?" Ashleigh asked. "After everything that has happened in the past it's no wonder why we are all worried about you."

"You're right," Casey sighed again. "I probably should get things checked out."

"I think that's a good idea," Ashleigh replied. "Call me later if you find anything out OK?"

"Yeah, I'll call you later. Thanks for talking with me Ash," Casey replied.

"That's what I'm here for," Ashleigh replied with a small laugh. "Bye."

"Bye," said Casey as she hung up the phone.

She quickly dialed Dr. Snyder's number to see if she could get in to see her today.

"Dr. Snyder's office," the receptionist answered the phone.

"Hi, this is Casey Cappington. I've been having some dizzy spells the past couple of days and I was wondering if I could get in today to see Dr. Snyder and see what is going on."

"Sorry, I don't believe I'll be able to get you in today," the receptionist replied. "Dr. Snyder had an emergency delivery this morning and it's hard to tell when she'll even be back in the office to see patients."

"Darn," Casey replied.

"If you're really worried I would suggest you go to the emergency room," said the receptionist. "Otherwise I can put your name down on the waiting list and call you later today if she happens to have a cancelation or something."

"OK, go ahead and write my name down," said Casey. "And I guess I'll wait to hear from you."

"I will give you a call later this afternoon," the receptionist replied.

"OK, thanks for your help."

"You're welcome, goodbye," the receptionist said hanging up the phone.

Casey put the phone down on the table feeling defeated. She would certainly feel much more comfortable going to Dr. Snyder's office rather than going to the hospital. She just hoped they would call back later and get her in later today.

About a half an hour later Cappie came downstairs. Casey was still sitting at the kitchen table flipping through yesterday's newspaper.

"Morning," he said as he walked to the refrigerator to get a bottle of orange juice. "How did you sleep?"

"Pretty good," Casey replied. "How about you?"

"Horrible," said Cappie as he sat down at the table across from Casey. "I was so worried about you that I had a hard time getting to sleep."

"It happened again this morning," said Casey softly.

"Are you serious?" Cappie asked. "What do you think is going on?"

"I'm not really sure," Casey replied. "I called Dr. Snyder's office but she had an emergency delivery this morning and they aren't sure if they'll be able to get me in or not today."

"Are you sure you should be waiting?" Cappie asked. "I really think we need to go get this checked out right now."

"I really don't feel like spending all day in the emergency room," Casey sighed.

"And I really don't feel like losing you or our son because you're too stubborn to go get this checked out," said Cappie.

"Everything is OK, really," said Casey. "It only really happens when I change positions. I'm fine just sitting here right now."

"Alright, then stand up," ordered Cappie.

"Why?" Casey asked.

"I want to see if it happens again," he replied.

"Fine," said Casey as she backed the chair away and stood up. "There, you see, I'm—"

But Casey didn't finish her sentence. The room began to spin more than it had the previous times this had happened to her. This time she was also losing her balance. Cappie had a very quick reaction time and stood up and grabbed her waist to lower her slowly back down into the chair. He looked at Casey and knew for sure this time something was really wrong. She was pale and beginning to sweat a little bit. He grabbed a section of the newspaper and began fanning her to cool her down.

"Wow," Casey finally began to mutter. "What in the heck happened?"

"I think you almost passed out," said Cappie. "And now it's time to go to the hospital."

"Yeah, I think you're right," Casey conceded.

"I'm going to go throw some clothes on," said Cappie. "You stay put right here and then I'll help you to the car."

"OK," Casey replied taking the newspaper out of his hand so she could continue to fan herself.

Cappie ran upstairs as fast as he could and quickly changed into a pair of jeans and a t-shirt. He then ran back downstairs and helped Casey get her slippers on.

"Are you sure I'll be able to make it to the car?" Casey asked. "I'm still feeling a little lightheaded."

"Would you rather I call an ambulance?" Cappie asked.

Casey though about it for a second. "No, that's OK. I'll try and make it," she replied.

Cappie took Casey's hand and wrapped his other arm around her waist.

"Now we're just going to take this nice and slow," he stated. "And you tell me if you feel like you're going to pass out or anything."

"OK," Casey replied as she took a deep breath.

Cappie slowly helped her into a standing position and Casey immediately felt the dizziness come on again.

"Cap, I'm scared," she said as tears filled her eyes.

"Hey, now is not the time to cry," he said as gently as he could. "Right now we just need to concentrate on getting to the hospital."

Casey just nodded her head as the two of them stood there for another minute.

"Are you ready to start walking?" Cappie asked.

"Yeah," Casey replied.

The two of them slowly took small steps through the kitchen towards the garage door. Casey was gripping onto Cappie as tightly as she could and he was holding her as securely as he could. They finally made it to the door and out into the car. Casey breathed a sigh of relief as she sat down in the passenger's seat. She felt like she had just walked a mile, even though it couldn't have been more than a hundred feet.

"Alright, let's get out of here," said Cappie as he got into the driver's seat and started the car.

Casey continued to feel a little lightheaded on the drive to the hospital but she was starting to feel better than she had been feeling. Cappie parked the car and ran inside to get a wheelchair. He came out with one of the male nurses to help get Casey into the wheelchair from the car. The two of them successfully did it without any issues and took Casey into the emergency room. They checked in and Casey was immediately taken back to one of the rooms. Cappie helped her get out of the wheelchair and up to lay down on the bed.

They were alone for a few minutes until the same male nurse who helped her in came into the room.

"Hello, my name is Kevin," he said. "I've been told you aren't feeling very well today."

"Not at all," said Casey as Kevin put the blood pressure cuff around her arm. "I can't seem to shake this dizzy feeling every time I go to move."

"How far along are you?" Kevin asked as he started the blood pressure machine.

"Around seven and a half months," Casey replied. "I'm due around February 23rd."

Kevin jotted down some notes from what Casey was telling him and waited for the machine to finish. Finally it beeped.

"Whoa, one hundred sixty over ninety two," he said. "That is quite high."

"Is that what is causing all of this?" Casey asked.

"It could be," Kevin replied.

"God, I haven't taken your blood pressure in weeks," said Cappie. "I can't believe I didn't even think about it."

"Honey, don't dwell on that," said Casey. "Let's concentrate on the present right now."

Cappie just nodded as Kevin began to listen to Casey's heart and lungs.

"I'm going to get the fetal monitor on your now," Kevin said as he finished taking Casey's pulse.

Casey lifted up her shirt exposing her stomach as Kevin wrapped the monitor around her. Once it was in place he turned it on and both Cappie and Casey let out a sigh of relief when they heard the baby's heartbeat loud and clear.

"The heart rate looks good," Kevin said after he watched the monitor for a couple of minutes.

He then finished up Casey's exam by taking her temperature which was normal.

"I'm going to report this stuff to the doctor and he should be in shortly," he said as he left the room.

"God, here we are again," said Casey looking over at Cappie. "Do you think we can ever stay away from this hospital? Every one of us has been here for one reason or another."

"Yeah, that's true," said Cappie in a solemn tone.

"The worst part of being here is the waiting time," said Casey with a sigh. "We'll probably be sitting here for hours before we know what is going on."

"We know your blood pressure is sky high and that can't be good," said Cappie.

"Well hopefully they can give me something to bring it down," said Casey. "And then we can go home and pretend this never happened."

"I wish I was as positive as you are," said Cappie.

The two of them sat in silence for the next half an hour or so, each not really sure what to say to each other at the moment. The only noise filling the room was the thumping of the baby's heartbeat from the machine that was monitoring it.

Finally the doctor knocked on the door and came into the room a little bit before noon. He was a younger man wearing the typical white coat all the doctors wore. He had brown hair and tanned skin. Casey couldn't help but smile having an attractive doctor for once. Before, she had always dealt with older men or female doctors.

"Hi, I'm doctor Horvath," he said shaking hers and Cappie's hands. "I've gone over what the nurse put in his notes and the blood pressure is quite alarming."

"Yeah, I'm not sure why it is so high," Casey replied. "I've never had anything happen to me like this before."

"Well there are a couple of reasons why this is happening," Dr. Horvath replied. "The first is gestational hypertension which is basically high blood pressure while you are pregnant. The treatment is some safe medication for you and the baby and will usually resolve itself once the baby is delivered. The second concern is preeclampsia. This is a much more serious condition that could be fatal to yours and your baby's lives."

"How do we know which one I have?" Casey asked.

"Well, besides the dizziness have you had any other symptoms such as abdominal pain, sensitivity to light or headaches?" Dr. Horvath asked.

"I've had a couple of headaches," Casey replied. "But I had gotten the same thing when I was pregnant with my other child so I didn't really think anything of it."

"Hmmm, OK," said Dr. Horvath who looked like he was deep in thought, taking in everything Casey was telling him. "There are a couple of tests I can run on your blood and urine to see if you may have the preeclampsia. So I'm going to have the nurse take those samples from you and we will see what the results are. In the meantime, I'm going to give you a dose of some blood pressure medicine that is safe for the baby so we can bring those numbers down."

"Wait, you never said what the treatment for preeclampsia was?" Cappie asked.

"The only treatment for it is delivery of the baby," Dr. Horvath replied.

"But she still has a least another month and a half until her due date," said Cappie.

"I understand that," the doctor replied. "Right now we just need to wait to see what the tests reveal. Once we know what is going on we can make a determination from there."

"How long are these tests going to take?" Casey asked.

"A while," the doctor replied. "I'll probably know later this afternoon. So you just sit tight. I'll talk to the nurse about getting you a lunch tray."

"OK, thanks," said Casey as the doctor hurried out of the room.

"Jesus Christ, if it's not one thing it's another," said Cappie in a very frustrated tone.

"Cap, calm down," said Casey.

But Cappie was not interested in calming down. He stood up and began to pace in the room.

"If only I was checking your blood pressure," he mumbled to himself as he paced.

"This isn't your fault," said Casey. "This is just something that happens. Neither of us had any control over it so stop beating yourself up."

Cappie was about to respond when Kevin walked back into the room.

"I have come to get some samples," he said putting on a pair of rubber gloves.

"I'm going to step out and call your parents," said Cappie. "I'll be back in a second."

"He seems more stressed than you are," said Kevin as Cappie left the room.

"He tends to get like that in these kinds of situations," Casey replied. "I more or less go with the flow but he's feeling guilty because he didn't check my blood pressure more often."

"There's no way he could control this by taking your blood pressure," said Kevin.

"I know that and deep down he knows that," Casey replied. "He's just choosing not to believe it and in turn getting all stressed."

"Well Dr. Horvath is a good doctor," said Kevin. "You're in good hands."

"Are you guys going to contact my regular doctor, Dr. Snyder?" Casey asked.

"Yeah, I put a call out to her after I did your assessment," Kevin replied. "She should be calling back in a little bit."

"OK, thanks," Casey replied.

Kevin was just finishing up taking Casey's blood when Cappie came back into the room.

"Bad news," he said sitting down in the chair. "You're parents aren't able to keep Cadence this afternoon. I have to go and get her."

"Why can't they keep her? Do they know that we're here in the emergency room?" Casey asked.

"Yeah, they know," Cappie replied. "But apparently your dad is at work and your mom has a doctor's appointment to go to that she can't miss and she can't take Cadence with her either."

"Wonderful," Casey sighed.

"I was thinking I could pick her up and take her to Ash and Beaver's until we know more of what is going on," said Cappie.

"That's a good idea," said Casey. "The doctor said they wouldn't have these results until later this afternoon anyway."

"I know. I just don't really want to leave you alone though," said Cappie.

"Don't worry about it," said Kevin. "The doctor wrote orders to have her blood pressure taken every half an hour so I'll be here checking on her a lot. And if you want we have volunteers here at the hospital. I can have one of them come in and stay and talk with her."

"That would be great," said Cappie. "It would at least give me piece of mind that she's not here all alone."

"No problem," said Kevin as he walked to the door. "I'll go and put in the request right now."

Cappie went up to Casey once the door had shut behind Kevin.

"Are you sure you're going to be OK?" Cappie asked. "I could call Beaver and just see if he could go to your mom's and pick up Cadence and bring her back."

"No, no," said Casey reaching for Cappie's hand. "I think it will be good for you to get away for a bit and try to calm down. Maybe seeing Cadence will help with that."

"Yeah, you're probably right," said Cappie squeezing Casey's hand.

"We will be just fine," said Casey squeezing his hand back.

"I love you," said Cappie as he bent down and kissed Casey on the forehead.

"I love you too," said Casey. "And say hi to Cadence for me."

"I will," Cappie replied as he backed away and slowly walked out the door.

Casey laid in the bed for the next twenty minutes just staring at the various machines and tools that filled the room, wondering what each of them were for. She was getting kind of bored and wished the room at least had a TV in it so she could keep herself occupied that way. Kevin walked in the room to take her blood pressure again and give her some of the medicine.

"Your blood pressure is about the same," he stated. "But hopefully this medicine will help bring it down."

"Yeah, I hope so," Casey replied as she watched Kevin push the liquid medicine into her IV.

"I called the volunteer service and someone should be by shortly to spend a little time with you," he said as he threw the syringe away.

"I actually can't wait for someone to come," said Casey. "It's pretty boring just laying here."

"Yeah, I told the big boss that we needed to put some televisions in these rooms but I guess he didn't want to spend the money," Kevin replied. "I've gotta run. I'll be back in about a half an hour to check you again."

"OK," Casey replied.

Casey began staring at the ceiling and counting the various dots the tiles formed when a few minutes later someone knocked on her door and came into the room.

"Hello, I'm the volunteer," said an older lady who entered the room and shut the door behind her.

Casey at first didn't get a good look at her as she had turned to shut the door. But as soon as she turned around Casey knew exactly who she was.

"Eleanor!" she exclaimed.

"Oh my goodness!" exclaimed Eleanor. "What a small world! What are you doing here Miss Casey?"

Eleanor went up and gave Casey a hug.

"I'm having some baby problems," Casey replied as she rubbed her stomach. "Looks like I have high blood pressure but they aren't sure what is causing it."

"Oh no, I hope everything turns out to be OK," said Eleanor as she pulled a chair closer to Casey's bed and sat down in it. "Where is your husband? Is he still recovering from the fire?"

"No, he's home and back to a hundred percent," Casey replied. "He was here but he had to leave to pick up our daughter from my parents because they couldn't watch her anymore. He should be back in a little bit."

"Well I am certainly glad to hear that is doing much better," said Eleanor as she took Casey's hand. "I kept you in my prayers you know."

"And I kept you in mine as well," said Casey smiling at Eleanor. "How have you been?"

"Things were pretty rough after Stan passed away," Eleanor replied. "I felt really alone and lost for a while. I even wondered what I had left to live for since he was gone."

"Oh, I'm so sorry to hear that," Casey replied. "You look like you're doing well now though."

"Yes, I am doing quite well," Eleanor replied. "I realized that staying in the house by myself was probably the worst thing for me. So with some encouragement from my friends I joined one of the senior centers and go their frequently for meals, playing cards, bingo and whatever else we come up with. And I also began volunteering at some of the local hospitals around town. That is why I am here today."

"I am so glad that you're here today," said Casey. "Seeing you has really lifted my spirits. I didn't think I would ever see you again."

"I didn't think so either," she replied. "I regretted not getting your phone number or anything. I wondered a lot about how you and your husband were doing but I wasn't sure how to get in touch with you."

"You really helped me that day in the hospital Eleanor," said Casey taking her hand. "I'm not sure where I would be right now without your advice. And even though you were going through a lot yourself you still took time out to help me and I can never thank you enough."

"Speaking of that advice," said Eleanor. "How are things going with your husband's parents?"

"They are a little better," said Casey. "They went on their trip and called us several times during it. They got home about a month ago and still haven't been out to see us but they do check in more often than they had been."

"Well I'm sure you'll see them soon as they will want to be there for the birth of their grandchild," said Eleanor.

"I'm not so sure about that," said Casey. "I guess they weren't too happy to find out that we were having another baby so who knows if they will be here or not."

"They will be here," said Eleanor. "Grandparents never miss a chance in meeting their grandchildren. You guys may not be on the best of terms yet but I'm sure they will be supportive of everything in the end."

"I'm sure you're right," said Casey. "It's just hard to believe at this point."

"I understand," said Eleanor. "Besides, you need to focus on whatever is going with you at the moment. And speaking of the baby, do you still have Eleanor on your list of baby names?"

Casey let out a small laugh. "Unfortunately for you, we're having a boy," she said. "And Eleanor isn't exactly a male name so we are going with something else."

"Hey, I thought I could at least try," said Eleanor also with a small chuckle.

"So do you like volunteering at the hospitals?" Casey asked.

"Oh yes, it's one of the most rewarding things I have ever done," Eleanor replied. "I love getting to talk to people and comforting them."

"That's awesome," said Casey. "I'm still kind of in shock that you're here talking with me. I thought you lived down by where the other hospital was that we were at."

"Nope, I live around here actually," said Eleanor. "They flew Stan in a helicopter down there because they couldn't help his heart problem here at this hospital."

"I guess we both had the same kind of thing," said Casey. "My husband was here first but they ended up flying him down there also because of the burn unit they have."

Eleanor was about to reply when Kevin walked in the room.

"Another blood pressure check time," he said reaching for the machine.

Eleanor scooted her chair out of the way as Kevin put the cuff around Casey's arm. The three of them sat in silence anxiously awaiting the number to come up on the machine. Finally, it beeped.

"One forty-seven over eighty-eight," said Kevin. "It's gone down, which is good. But the doctor is probably going to want it to come down even more."

"Well Eleanor here is really helping me stay calm by talking with me," said Casey. "We've actually met before at another hospital when both of our husbands were patients."

"Wow, that's amazing," said Kevin.

"Oh yes, Casey is like the granddaughter I never had," said Eleanor. "Which reminds me," she turned and looked at Casey. "I thought I told you to call me Granny."

Casey let out a small laugh. "I'm sorry Granny," she said. "I'll remember from now on."

Kevin also let out a small laugh. "I will leave you two ladies be," he said. "It shouldn't be long before the test results are in Casey so just keep hanging in there."

"I am," said Casey as she looked and smiled at Eleanor.

Kevin left the room and Casey and Eleanor talked about children and life in general over the next half an hour. It turned out Eleanor had a little scare with her daughter when she was pregnant and had to have a c-section to deliver her. But her daughter turned out just fine which again helped ease Casey's uneasiness about the situation.

At the end of the half an hour Kevin came back in and checked Casey's blood pressure again and it was the same as it was before. He wrote down the findings and left the room so the ladies could continue to talk.

It was about ten minutes after that when Cappie came walking in the door.

"Hello," he said as he entered the room.

"Hey Cap, you'll never believe this," said Casey. "But this is Eleanor, I mean Granny, the lady I told you about that I talked to when you were in the hospital."

"Wow," said Cappie reaching his hand out to Eleanor. "It is really nice to finally meet you. I'm very sorry to hear about your husband."

"It's OK darling," said Eleanor shaking his hand. "Stan passed away a while ago and while I'll never be done healing from his death I have done my best to continue on with my life."

"That's great that you are volunteering here," said Cappie. "And thank you so much for sitting here with Casey while I was away."

"It was my pleasure," said Eleanor. "Miss Casey and I could probably talk for hours and hours at a time."

"I really don't want to lose touch with you this time Granny," said Casey. "Do you mind if we exchange phone numbers?"

"Not at all," said Eleanor pulling a piece of paper out of her purse and writing her phone number and address on it.

Casey tore the piece of paper in half and wrote her information on the other half and handed it to Eleanor.

"It really has been such a treat seeing you again Casey," said Eleanor taking her hand again. "I really hope everything turns out OK with you and the baby. I will certainly keep you both in my prayers."

"You don't have to leave now Granny," said Casey a little sad that she was leaving.

"I must go sweetheart," Eleanor replied. "There are other patients who are alone and need my services. But I promise I will stop in and see you if you are still here when I am finished."

"And if I'm not here please don't hesitate at all to call me," said Casey.

"Yeah, we would love to have you come to one of the restaurants and have a meal on us Eleanor," said Cappie.

Eleanor playfully glared at Cappie.

"I mean, Granny," said Cappie with a smile

"That's much better. I will certainly take you up on your offer sometime," said Eleanor. "Now give me a hug dear."

Casey leaned forward and gave Eleanor a big hug, holding on tight for several seconds before letting go.

"You're the best Granny," said Casey as she backed away, a few tears filling her eyes. "Never let anyone tell you otherwise."

"I certainly won't dear," said Eleanor. "And you stay strong. Like I said before, I see a lot of myself in you when I was your age. And as long as you keep fighting and never give up, everything will be just fine. I promise."

"Thanks Granny," Casey replied wiping a tear off her cheek that had fallen.

Eleanor took Casey's hand and gave her a soft kiss on the back of it. She then turned around to find Cappie standing behind her.

"My you're tall," she said with a small laugh as she looked up at him.

"All the better to give you a big hug then," said Cappie smiling at her as he reached his arms out.

Eleanor gave him a hug also and began walking towards the door.

"You two will be just fine," she said opening the door. "I love you both."

"Love you too," said Casey as she blew Eleanor a kiss as she left the room.

As soon as the door shut Cappie turned to look at Casey and they both smiled at each other.

"She is a pretty special woman," said Casey.

"I'll say," said Cappie. "She seems to have a real effect on you."

"She helped me through one of the worst times of my life when you were in the hospital and all that drama was going on with your parents," Casey replied. "And like she's an angel sent from above she was here today to help me through this also. I'm really glad you finally got to meet her. And I hope one day she can meet Cadence and the new baby also because I'm sure she would love them."

"Yeah, she sure would," said Cappie as he sat on the edge of Casey's bed. "She's like our honorary grandma."

"That's a good way of putting it," said Casey.

"So, did anything happen while I was gone?" Cappie asked as he rested his hand on top of Casey's.

"No, not really," Casey replied. "Kevin took my blood pressure a couple more times. It did go down with the medicine but still not as low as they would like I guess. So we're just waiting on the tests to find out where we go from here."

"I hope we find out soon," said Cappie looking at his watch. "I'm growing a little impatient."

"Did you tell Cadence what was going on?" Casey asked.

"Not exactly," said Cappie. "I just told her that you were sick and she needed to stay with Beaver and Ashleigh for a little bit so she didn't get sick too."

"And Ash and Beave were OK with it?" Casey asked.

"Oh yeah, they were fine," Cappie replied. "They even said she could spend the night with them if we needed her to depending on what we find out from the tests. The only thing is that we're in trouble if for some reason Ashleigh goes into labor."

"Oh gosh, wouldn't that just be a mess," said Casey with a small smile. "I guess it's not totally out of the question though. The doctor told Ashleigh she would probably deliver early since she's having twins."

"Well let's just pray those babies stay in there for a couple days longer so we can find out what is going on with you first," said Cappie smiling back at Casey.

Cappie leaned forward and gave Casey a small kiss on the lips. He then took his hand and began rubbing her stomach as he backed away.

"Cappie junior will be just fine," he said softly as he stared at his hand going back and forth on her stomach. "Even if we have to deliver him earlier than planned."

Casey just let out a small sigh as she took in the feeling of Cappie's hand on her stomach. He was so gentle when he rubbed her stomach and she could tell the baby really enjoyed it too as he moved around a little bit more when Cappie did that. After a few minutes Casey was just about asleep when a knock on the door startled both of them. They looked up just as Dr. Horvath walked in with several papers and a chart in his hands.

"I have got the test results," he said as he sat on one of the stools next to the bed. "And based on them I've got some good news and I've got some bad news."

Cappie and Casey immediately turned to look at each other with worried expressions. They weren't sure what news they wanted to hear first.

* * *

_**A/N: Hey everyone! Hope you liked the return of Granny! She was just so sweet and good for Casey before I had to bring her back. :0) Sorry to leave you with a little cliffhanger here. There's going to be a lot of things happening with the story in the next several chapter so hope you're all excited for them!**_

_**Thanks again for all the nice and encouraging reviews...you guys are truely the best!**_

_**And Jessica98...thanks for the suggestion! I thought about going that route at some point in the story. I'm going to have to do a little research and stuff on it but I'm sure you'll be happy with the result :0) And that's awesome that you're so young and a Greek fan! Thanks for reading my story. I look forward to your comments!**_


	137. Under Pressure

UNDER PRESSURE

Cappie and Casey continued to stare at each other without saying a word. But at the same time they were silently talking to each other, reading the expressions on each other's faces.

"I think we want to hear the good news first," said Cappie still staring right into Casey's eyes.

Casey nodded her head slightly in agreement.

"The good news is that the baby is OK," said Dr. Horvath. "You do not have preeclampsia."

"Oh thank god," said Casey with a sigh of relief. But she tensed back up just as quickly knowing that the doctor said there was some bad news to go along with the good news.

"The bad news is your blood pressure," continued Dr. Horvath. "It still continues to be too high and it's not going down as low as we want it to with medicine."

"So what does that mean?" Casey asked.

Dr. Horvath took in a deep breath. "Bed rest," he said as he let out his breath of air.

"Bed rest? What is that exactly?" Cappie asked.

"Bed rest essentially means that the mother isn't allowed to really get up and move around and certainly no strenuous activity at all," Dr. Horvath replied.

"I have to stay in bed for the next month and a half?" Casey said raising her voice a little bit.

"Pretty much," the doctor replied. "You're allowed to get up and go to the bathroom and do some short walking but any kind of activity is going to cause your blood pressure to go up and cause harm to both you and the baby."

"Can't you just give her more medicine or something to keep the blood pressure down?" Cappie asked.

"Unfortunately we've already given her the maximum dose that we know is safe for both her and the baby," Dr. Horvath replied. "I'm going to keep her on that dose daily to keep the blood pressure down to more manageable numbers at least."

"Is bed rest something I'm going to have to stay in the hospital for or can I go home?" Casey asked.

"The answer to that question is what I have been contemplating," Dr. Horvath replied. "I consulted with Dr. Snyder and she feels that you two are able to monitor the blood pressure on your own at home."

"Yes, we have our own monitor and everything," Cappie replied.

"And I think you would probably be more comfortable at home Mrs. Cappington," added Dr. Horvath.

"Oh yes, that would be a lot better than being here in the hospital," she replied.

"OK, I will let you go home then," Dr. Horvath replied. "But as soon as you walk in the door you will need to go straight to the bedroom and get used to it for the next month or so. I want you to keep a log of the blood pressure, taking it at least every hour."

"Not a problem doc," said Cappie. "I am on top of that."

"I'm going to go print off some information on what you are and are not allowed to do," Dr. Horvath replied. "I'll be back in a few minutes."

"OK, thanks," said Casey as he stood up and left the room.

"Well," said Cappie with a deep breath after the doctor walked out. "At least the baby is OK."

"Yeah, that's true," Casey replied. "This bed rest thing is going to kill me though. You know I'm the type of person who has to be moving and doing something just about all the time. What am I going to do in bed?"

"We're just going to have to make the best of it," said Cappie. "I will bring the DVD player upstairs and hook it up the TV in our bedroom and I'll go out and get you whatever books or magazines you want to read."

"What about Cadence?" Casey asked. "How am I going to take care of her?"

"Obviously you're going to have to cut back on things you do with her," Cappie replied. "But that doesn't mean that she can't crawl in bed with you and color some books or you could read to her. You'll still be able to do things with her. And what things you can't do, I'll take over and do."

"You just reopened the restaurant," said Casey with a solemn expression now overcoming her face. "You can't take time off like that."

"Don't worry about it," said Cappie. "I will do what I have to do. I'm sure your parents and Ash and Beave can help out until their babies come. Plus we have other family and friends who could pitch in if needed."

"This is certainly going to put a stress on everything," said Casey with a deep breath.

"Yes, it probably will," Cappie replied. "But it's nothing that the two of us can't get through."

"I know," said Casey as she reached her hand out for Cappie's.

Cappie took her hand and kissed the back of it. The two of them were silently thinking about how this was really going to shake up their lives when the doctor walked back into the room.

"OK," he said sitting back down on the stool. "It's probably best for you to lie on your side but you are able to lie on your back occasionally if you want. No lifting, no exercises, no sex, very minimal stair climbing if you have to, no cleaning, no laundry and certainly no walking more than two or three hundred feet."

"So basically just lie in bed and do nothing," said Casey trying not to sound too upset even though she could feel the tears coming on.

"I understand all of this is hard to comprehend," said Dr. Horvath. "But you have to understand that it is best for you and the baby so the baby can stay inside of you and continue to develop before he is delivered. The closer to your due date he is born the better chance he has to be completely healthy and fully developed."

"It's just a lot to take in," said Casey softly.

"If you would like I could admit you for a couple of nights here in the hospital so you can get a feel for what you can and can't do and the nurses can continue to monitor you," said Dr. Horvath.

Casey turned to look at Cappie who just shrugged his shoulders.

"No, I think I'm ready to go home," said Casey. "I'm kind of sick of hospitals right now."

"Alright," Dr. Horvath replied standing up. "I'll get your discharge papers ready. If anything changes at all please call me or Dr. Snyder. Also, I want to see you back here if your blood pressure goes any higher than what it is right now while you're on the medicine."

"Absolutely," Cappie replied.

"I'll have the nurse come in with your medicine and take the IV out of your arm and then you'll be good to go," said Dr. Horvath.

"OK, thanks doctor," said Cappie shaking his hand before he left the room.

Over the next half an hour the nurse explained the new medicine to Casey and got her ready to leave the hospital. Casey was wheeled to the car in a wheelchair and given strict orders to go right home.

"Should we pick up Cadence?" Casey asked as Cappie pulled out of the hospital parking lot.

"No, I talked to Ashleigh while the nurse was in the room with you," Cappie replied. "They are going to keep her for the night so we can get settled and I'll pick her up in the morning."

"That was nice of them," Casey replied.

Cappie pulled into the driveway about ten minutes later and slowly walked with Casey in the house and upstairs to the bedroom.

"It's kind of nice not having those dizzy spells since being put on this medicine," said Casey as she sat down in bed. "It's weird how I feel better but still can't really do anything."

"I'm glad those have gone away for you," said Cappie as he walked into the closet. "I didn't want you to pass out or anything on me."

"Yeah, that probably wouldn't have been a good thing," Casey said with a small laugh.

Cappie walked out of the closet with Casey's pajamas.

"Go ahead and put these on and I'll make us some dinner," said Cappie. "Might as well be as comfortable as you can be."

"Cap, I'm still wearing my pajamas from this morning," said Casey giving Cappie a weird look.

"Sorry," said Cappie as he set the clothes back in the closet. "I'm just kind of overwhelmed at the moment."

"We'll just take this one day at a time Cap," said Casey changing to a more sympathetic look. "I think you should just make us a couple of sandwiches and we'll head to bed early. We've had a long day."

"You're right," said Cappie. "You make yourself comfortable and I'll be back in a few minutes."

"When you come up can you bring my planner and notebook with you?" Casey asked. "I want to start documenting what is going on."

"OK," Cappie replied as he walked out of the room and headed downstairs.

Casey did her best to pull down the covers without moving too much and got into bed. She stacked several pillows behind her and rested against them so she didn't have to eat lying down. It was at that moment she got her first taste of the bed rest and she could already feel the boredom coming on. She reached for the remote and flipped on the television to the local news, more for background noise than anything.

About fifteen minutes later Cappie came back in the room with an armful of things.

"You didn't have to carry all that at once," said Casey taking the bottles of water, her notebooks and one of the sandwiches out of his hands.

"I know," he replied setting the rest of the things on his side of the bed. "I just didn't feel like making multiple trips."

Casey just nodded her head as she took a bite of her turkey sandwich.

"Tastes good," she said as Cappie put on a pair of shorts and climbed into bed next to her.

"Thanks," he replied taking a bite of his own and watching the news she had turned on.

As she finished her sandwich Casey reached for her planner so she could write down some important dates. But as soon as she opened it her heart immediately sank.

"Uh oh," she said under her breath.

"What?" Cappie asked turning to look at her.

"This is probably a bad time to mention that I set Cadence up with a playgroup on Friday," said Casey.

"Why would that be a problem?" Cappie asked. "I can take her and pick her up from wherever she has to go."

"You see, that's the problem," Casey hesitated. "She doesn't have to go anywhere. The playgroup is set up to come here."

"Here?" Cappie asked almost choking on the bite of sandwich he took.

"Yeah, well, I wanted her to start interacting with kids her own age," said Casey. "And one of the ladies at the restaurant told me about the group so I joined."

"Well we're just going to have to cancel for Friday then," said Cappie. "I'm sure the other mothers will understand."

"No, they won't," said Casey now turning to look at Cappie. "Most of them just drop their child off and go off for a couple of hours for appointments or whatever else they may have planned."

"So you're saying we're, wait I'M, stuck doing it then huh?" Cappie asked.

"Pretty much," said Casey after a brief pause.

"So how many little rugrats are going to be coming?" Cappie asked. "Like twenty?"

"Oh no, no more than four or five I believe," Casey replied.

"Oh," said Cappie with a more enthusiastic tone. "I can do that. No problem."

"Are you sure?" Casey asked. "I can ask my mom or someone to come and help you."

"Nah, if you were going to do it by yourself at seven months pregnant then there is no reason why I couldn't do it by myself," Cappie replied. "Besides, how bad can five two year old be?"

Casey just nodded as she shut her planner and set it on the nightstand. She then curled up next to Cappie as he wrapped his arm around her. Deep down she knew that Cappie had no idea what he was going to be in for on Friday…

* * *

Casey grudgingly made it through the next couple of days. It was hard for her to get used to staying in bed all day but she made the best of it. Cappie went out and got her a few books to read and Cadence helped the time pass by also. She would lay in bed with Casey and watch movies or color in her coloring books.

Cappie felt like he was adjusting well to becoming a fulltime house mother. He actually enjoyed being able to take care of Casey and doing what he can around the house to make things easier on her. He gave her a bell to ring each time she needed him and brought her anything he could to help make the time pass by easier for her. Beaver took over things with the restaurants while Cappie was away but Cappie was able to go in a couple of times when Ashleigh or someone else came over to stay with Casey and watch Cadence, relieving him of his duties.

Cappie woke up Friday morning early so he could get things set up for the playgroup that was coming. He made sure to go through all the toys and make sure they were all age appropriate and that he had plenty of juice and snacks for the kids. After he was sure everything was set he went up to check on Casey before the kids started to arrive.

"Do you have everything you need?" Casey asked as Cappie walked into the room.

"Yup, everything is in place and I'm ready for a couple of hours of kiddie fun," said Cappie as he sat on the edge of the bed.

"Daddy can I have some juice?" Cadence asked.

"In a little bit," Cappie replied. "The other kids are going to arrive soon and we'll all have some juice once they get here."

"OK," she sighed as she went back to coloring in her book.

"It'll be pretty lonely with you two down there having all kinds of fun and I'm stuck up here in bed," said Casey.

"Maybe you could take a nap," suggested Cappie. "That way by the time you wake up everyone will be gone and we'll be back up here to keep you company."

"A nap isn't a bad idea," said Casey with a yawn.

"It's about time for the kids to arrive anyway," said Cappie looking at his watch. "Come on Cadence, let's head downstairs so we can meet your friends."

"OK daddy," said Cadence as she shut her coloring book and climbed off the bed.

"We'll try not to get too crazy downstairs and let you sleep," said Cappie with a small laugh.

"I'm sure you'll be fine," Casey replied.

Cappie stood up and gave Casey a soft kiss on the lips. He then went over to the phone and turned off the ringer.

"There," he said as he set the phone back down. "You will have complete silence to sleep."

"Sounds great," said Casey as she got comfortable in the bed.

Cappie took Cadence's hand and the two of them walked out of the bedroom, shutting the door behind them to let Casey sleep.

"When can mommy get out of bed?" Cadence asked as Cappie picked her up and they walked down the steps.

"Not until she has the new baby," Cappie replied. "We're not sure when that will be."

As soon as they got to the bottom of the steps the doorbell rang.

"Looks like our first guest is here," said Cappie as he walked over to the door.

He set Cadence on the ground as he opened the door.

"Hi!" said Cadence eagerly to the two people standing on the other side of the door.

"Well hello to you," said the woman at the door looking down at Cadence. She then looked up at Cappie. "Hi, I'm Sandy," she said extending her hand.

"Nice to meet you, I'm Cappie, Casey's husband," he said moving out of the way and inviting them inside.

"And this is Trevor," Sandy said introducing her son.

"Hi Trevor," said Cappie. "I'm Cappie and this is my daughter Cadence. We have lots of toys set up in the living room. Why don't the two of you go and check them out."

"OK," said Trevor as the two of them ran into the living room.

"Well that didn't take long," said Cappie with a small laugh.

"I've got an appointment I have to run to," said Sandy. "Trevor should be just fine. I'll see you at three."

"OK, bye," said Cappie as he watched her rush out of the house and into her car.

As she pulled out of the driveway Cappie saw another car pull in. Soon a man a little older than him came walking up to the front door with his little girl.

"Hello I'm Eric and this is my daughter Elizabeth," he said to Cappie.

"Nice to meet you. I'm Cappie," Cappie said shaking his hand.

"Elizabeth just got done having a good lunch so she should be ready to play," said Eric as he set her down and watched as she joined the other two kids in the living room. "The only thing is that we're having a problem with is some issues with her sharing toys. If she starts to really act up you can put her in time out or give me a call."

"I'll keep that in mind," said Cappie as he took Eric's card.

The two exchanged goodbyes and Eric left. Cappie was just about the close the door when two more cars pulled up.

"Hello," said Cappie as two women approached the door with their children.

"Thank you so much for having the playgroup this week," said one of the women. "It gives us some time to have our book club meeting."

"Not a problem at all," said Cappie inviting them into the house.

"This is Laura and that is Jenny," said one of the women as they both watched their children join the group. "They've done this several times before so you shouldn't have any problems."

"Sounds good," said Cappie as he walked them to the door. "I'll see you in a couple of hours."

"Bye," they both said as they walked out the door.

Cappie shut the door and took a deep breath. All the kids had arrived and appeared to be playing well together. All except Cadence. Cappie watched as she sat in the corner playing with her doll by herself. He went over and sat next to her.

"How come you're not playing with the other kids?" he asked.

"I don't know," was all Cadence responded.

"Well did you introduce yourself?" Cappie asked.

Cadence shook her head no.

"You can't make friends if you don't introduce yourself," said Cappie. "I'll help you."

"OK daddy," said Cadence as she stood up and put her doll down.

Cappie saw Laura and Jenny playing together with the ball and took Cadence up to them.

"Hi girls, this is Cadence," said Cappie.

"Hi Cadence," said Laura.

"Do you want to play?" Jenny asked.

"Yes," said Cadence with a smile.

Cappie watched as Cadence began to play with the two girls. She was smiling and laughing which seeing that always brought a smile to Cappie's face. Cappie soon moved over to the couch and sat back and watched as all the kids played.

"Excuse me mister," said Trevor about an hour later. "Where is the potty?"

"It's right there," said Cappie pointing to the door. "Do you need any help?"

"Nope," said Trevor as he ran into the bathroom and shut the door.

Cappie went back to his relaxed position just watching the kids play. Cadence we getting along very well with Laura and Jenny. They went from playing with the ball to playing house together. Since Cadence was a little younger than Laura and Jenny she was elected to be the baby. But she didn't seem to mind and Cappie enjoyed seeing her interact with the rest of the kids.

A couple of minutes later he saw Trevor rejoin the group and decided it was time to get some juice and snacks together for them. He watched them closely from the kitchen as he sliced some fruit and poured five glasses of apple juice.

"Is everyone ready for a snack?" he raised his voice a little to get everyone's attention.

"Yay!" several of them yelled in unison as they all made their way to the small kids table he had set up in the kitchen and sat down.

The kids ate the snack fairly quickly and were back playing house in the living room in no time. Cappie watched Cadence go into the bathroom and stood near the door knowing that sometimes she needed help getting her pants zipped up and buttoned.

"Ewww daddy!" she yelled.

"What's wrong?" Cappie asked as he opened the door.

"Someone pee peed all over my potty!" she continued to yell.

Cappie could only assume that Trevor was trying to stand up to use the bathroom and missed the toilet a few times.

"It's alright," said Cappie grabbing a couple of paper towels. "I'll get this cleaned up right now so you can use your potty."

"He's a mean boy!" yelled Cadence as Cappie began cleaning things up.

"Now that's not nice to say," said Cappie as he turned around and looked in the living room to make sure the rest of the kids were still playing nicely. "It was an accident."

"He said I had cooties," said Cadence, now pouting.

"Well he's only here for another little bit," said Cappie finishing up cleaning the toilet. "Just be nice for a little bit longer."

"Fine," groaned Cadence. "Now leave."

"Don't you need help with your pants?" Cappie asked.

"No, I can do it myself," Cadence replied.

"OK," said Cappie as he walked out and shut the door. It was at that point in time that he realized how much his little girl was starting to grow up. Here she was playing with boys her own age and needing him less and less to help her with things. Before he knows it she's going to be dating and driving and hardly needing him at all. Those thoughts actually made him sick inside. He wanted his little girl to stay little forever.

Cappie shook off his thoughts and returned to the task of watching all the kids. He was finishing up washing his hands in the sink just as the phone rang. He quickly dried his hands and answered the phone.

"Hello," he said.

"Hi son! How are you?" a female voice asked.

"Mom? Is that you?" Cappie asked a little shocked that his mom was calling.

"Of course it's me silly," she said. "I haven't talked to you in a little while and I wanted to see how things were going."

"Things are OK," said Cappie. "I'm in the process of watching a playgroup for Cadence."

"That sounds like fun," said Mrs. Cappington. "How many kids are there?"

"Five including Cadence," Cappie replied. "They—"

"I WAS PLAYING WITH THAT!" Jenny yelled interrupting Cappie's sentence.

"Hold on mom," said Cappie as he walked over to Jenny and Laura. "What is going on ladies?"

"She stole my toy!" Jenny yelled.

"Laura, that's not nice to take someone's toy they are playing with," said Cappie.

"I HAD IT FIRST!" Laura yelled.

"You guys were playing so well together before," said Cappie. "Can't you just play with the toy together?"

"NO! I'm not friends with you Jenny!" said Laura as she stormed off and joined Elizabeth.

"FINE!" Jenny yelled as she threw the toy on the ground and went over to Cadence and Trevor.

"OK then," said Cappie seeing the situation had kind of resolved itself. "Sorry about that mom," he said going back to the phone. "I had a little issue there."

"I heard," Mrs. Cappington replied. "Where on earth is Casey? Why isn't she helping you?"

"Casey is on bed rest," Cappie replied. "She's only allowed out of bed to go to the bathroom. We were at the hospital a few days ago and they found out her blood pressure is going too high."

"Oh my," said Mrs. Cappington. "How come you didn't call and tell me?"

"I didn't think you cared," Cappie replied. "You made it very clear you and dad weren't happy we were having another child."

"Yes but we are always here for you son," Mrs. Cappington replied. "How are you running restaurants and taking care of everything around the home at the same time?"

"I'm making it work," Cappie replied. "Beaver is managing the restaurants and Casey is still here to watch Cadence if I need to run to the store or something."

"I really hope everything is OK with Casey," said Mrs. Cappington. "How is she holding up?"

"She's doing OK. Just taking— Trevor! Get out of that plant!" said Cappie noticing Trevor was playing with the dirt in one of Casey's plants.

"Are you sure—" Mrs. Cappington started.

"Yes, I'm fine," interrupted Cappie as he went over to where Trevor was. "Come on Trevor, let's go wash your hands."

"Maybe I should let you go," said Mrs. Cappington. "You sound busy."

"No, it's OK," said Cappie. "I don't get to talk to you much. Trevor is just finishing up washing his hands and I'll be all yours again."

There was a brief pause on the phone while Cappie helped Trevor get all the dirt off of his hands.

"Alright, go back and play," he said as Trevor ran back into the living room. "So what have you been up to mom?"

"Not a whole lot actually," Mrs. Cappington replied. "I've been printing off a lot of the pictures from our safari trip and putting them in photo albums. I can't wait to share them with you."

"Yeah, I can't wait either," Cappie replied. "It sounds like you guys had an amazing time."

"Oh we sure did," Mrs. Cappington replied. "It was—"

"DADDY!" yelled Cadence loudly. "SHE'S NOT SHARING!"

"Hold on," Cappie grumbled to his mom as he went into the living room.

"SHE WON'T GIVE ME MY DOLL!" Cadence yelled as Cappie approached.

"Were you playing with the doll?" Cappie asked.

"No," Cadence replied.

"Well if you weren't playing with it then why can't she play with it?" Cappie asked.

"BECAUSE IT'S MINE!" Cadence yelled.

"I think it will be good to share your doll," said Cappie. "Big girls share their dolls."

Cappie's last comment must have upset Cadence because she began loudly crying as soon as he finished.

"I—want—my—doll!" she yelled through her tears.

"This is not something you should be crying about," said Cappie as he took Cadence's hand and led her into the kitchen. "You're going to sit in this chair until you're done crying."

Cappie set Cadence in the chair as she continued to wail.

"YOU'RE MEAN DADDY!" she yelled as she briefly stopped crying. "I WANT MOMMY!"

Cappie was about to respond but he has learned in the past that there is no use arguing with Cadence. So he just ignored her comments and went back to talking with his mom.

"So what were you saying about Africa?" he asked.

"I don't think talking about Africa right now is what you need," said Mrs. Cappington. "Sounds like you need some help."

"I told you mom, I'm fine," said Cappie. "I have several people I can call if I do need help but I don't. Cadence is just a little cranky because she's ready for her nap. Come to think of it, I think all the kids are ready for their naps. They were so good about an hour ago and now they're like little devils running around."

"Welcome to the wonderful world of parenting," said Mrs. Cappington with a small laugh.

"Well you're lucky you had such a perfect child like me," said Cappie with a smirk.

Mrs. Cappington laughed harder. "You were far from perfect my son," she said. "You would throw the biggest temper tantrums when you didn't get your way. I think I know where Cadence gets it."

"If you say so," said Cappie now rolling his eyes.

"Daddy I'm done crying. Can I go play?" Cadence asked.

"Yes you can," Cappie replied as he watched Cadence hop off the chair and go back to the living room.

"That was quick," said Mrs. Cappington.

"It's never long," Cappie replied. "Once she realizes crying doesn't get her anywhere she usually stops and goes on her way."

Just then more crying broke out in the living room.

"What now?" Cappie mumbled as he went into the living room to find Elizabeth now crying with Cadence proudly holding her doll. "What happened?" he asked.

"I took my doll back!" said Cadence hugging the doll tighter.

"I was—playing with—it," said Elizabeth through her tears.

"Cadence you made Elizabeth cry. That was not nice," said Cappie.

"But it's MINE!" Cadence yelled.

"Didn't I just talk with you about sharing?" Cappie asked as Elizabeth continued to wail next to him.

"But she was hurting the doll," said Cadence trying to get her dad on her side.

"How was she hurting it?" Cappie asked.

"Pulling her hair," Cadence replied.

"I was—just—making her—look—pretty," said Elizabeth.

"See? She wasn't hurting the doll," said Cappie. "I think you need to give the doll back to Elizabeth. It wasn't nice to take it."

Then Cadence began to burst into tears again. Cappie was suddenly at a loss for what to do with both girls screaming their heads off next to him.

"BE QUIET!" Trevor yelled as he came up to them with his hands on his ears.

The room suddenly became silent with only the sniffles of both girls now being audible.

"Cadence, you know what you need to do," said Cappie sternly.

Cadence hesitated but eventually walked up to Elizabeth and handed her the doll.

"Thanks," said Elizabeth softly.

"That was very nice of you Cadence," said Cappie rubbing the top of her head. "I'm proud of you."

"No more crying!" yelled Trevor as he walked back over to where he was playing.

Cappie let out a small laugh at Trevor's odd ability to control the situation as he watched Cadence and Elizabeth now begin to play with the doll together. He sat back down on the couch when he realized he was still on the phone with his mom.

"Mom, sorry, I kind of forgot about you there," he said.

But the phone was silent.

"Mom?" he asked again.

Still no response.

A couple of seconds later the phone returned to a dial tone, signifying she had hung up the phone on him.

"Thanks a lot mom," he mumbled as he hung up the phone and threw it on the couch next to him.

Cappie looked at his watch and let out a little sigh of relief when he realized it was almost time for the kids to be picked up to go home. But they sure didn't make those last fifteen minutes easy on him. Trevor got back into the plant and not only got dirt on himself but all over the floor around the plant. While he was cleaning Trevor up the girls began getting into another argument over the doll. One of them was yelling, two others were crying and Cappie could feel his own blood pressure rising at the moment. He was about to go into the living room to once again calm the girls down when the phone rang again. He debated for a second as to whether he should answer it or not with all the commotion that was going on in the house but in the end decided to answer it as it could be his mom again. But instead of his mom on the other end was a very frantic Beaver.

"Cap, I think Ashleigh's gone into labor!"

And it was that very moment Cappie felt the most overwhelmed he had ever felt in his life. Was he really going to be able to do all of this on his own?

* * *

_**A/N: Hey everyone! I know I took a while to get this chapter up after leaving you with a cliffhanger on the last one...sorry about that :0( But I hope you liked the new chapter nonetheless! **_

_**Did everyone hear the sad news that Greek won't be returning until January 2011? It was posted on the ABC Family medianet website last week I think. It's crazy that we have to wait so long for the new season :0( I guess that just leaves me to write lots more fanfiction to get us through huh? LoL!**_

_**Anyway, hope you all liked the new chapter! As always, review and let me know. **_


	138. False Alarm

FALSE ALARM

"Beave, you've got to calm down," said Cappie into the phone. "There is no need to panic at the moment."

"Easy for you to say Cap," said Beaver. "You've been through this before!"

"Yes, that's why I'm telling you to stay calm," Cappie replied. "Is Ashleigh having contractions?"

"She doesn't think so but her water broke," Beaver replied.

"OK, have you called the doctor?" Cappie asked.

"Uh, no," Beaver replied in a softer tone. "You're the first person I called."

"Beave, I don't think I should have been the first person you called," said Cappie trying not to laugh. "I suggest you hang up with me and call the doctor. She'll probably have you go to the hospital."

"OK," Beaver replied. "But you'll be there with us right?"

"I don't know Beave," said Cappie with a sigh. "The parents should be here soon to pick up the kids from playgroup but I'm not sure what I can do with Casey on bed rest."

"Just please try," said Beaver.

Cappie could hear how scared he was in his voice.

"I'll do what I can," Cappie replied. "Call the doctor and keep me posted."

"OK, bye," said Beaver as the two of them hung up the phone.

"I LOVE DIRT!" Trevor yelled as soon as Cappie put the phone down.

Cappie took a deep breath before he turned to look in Trevor's direction, knowing there was going to be dirt all over the place yet again.

"DADDY! I WANT MY TOYS BACK!" Cadence then yelled.

"YOU'RE MEAN!" Elizabeth added to the commotion.

"THAT'S ENOUGH!" Cappie finally shouted out.

All the children suddenly grew silent; each one afraid of what Cappie was going to do next. Cappie went into the living room and put all four girls on different sections of the couch.

"I want you four to sit there until your parents come to pick you up," said Cappie in a calmer voice.

"But daddy—," Cadence began to whine.

"I don't want to hear it Cadence," said Cappie in a stern voice. "You guys are too out of control and I need you to sit still while I clean up Trevor."

Trevor looked up at Cappie with a smile on his face.

"Let's go," he said taking his hand and leading him into the kitchen.

After Trevor was cleaned up Cappie set him in one of the recliner chairs while he sat in the other.

"This is boring," said Jenny after a couple of minutes.

"I'm sorry but if you guys can't share the toys then it's just best if no one plays with them," he said rocking the chair back and forth while staring at each one of them.

Moments later the doorbell rang.

"Finally," Cappie mumbled as he got up to answer the door.

"Hello, I'm here to pick up Trevor," said his mom as Cappie opened the door. "I hope everything was OK with him."

"Trevor your mom is here," Cappie called into the living room.

"OK," he heard Trevor say back.

"I'm sorry but-" Cappie hesitated at first but finally grew the courage to finish his sentence. "Does your son have some sort of obsession with dirt?"

"Oh no, I didn't tell you," his mom said in a concerned voice.

"Tell me what?" Cappie asked.

"Trevor loves dirt and because of it we can't have any plants in our home because he's always getting into them," she replied. "I'm really sorry. I completely forgot to tell you."

"Well he should be nice and clean for you at least," said Cappie as Trevor joined them at the door.

"Thanks," she replied. "And again, I'm sorry about not telling you."

"It's OK. I guess I know now," said Cappie as he watched the two of them walk towards the car.

The other three girls were picked up in the next five minutes. Cadence surprisingly said goodbye to them nicely and hoped they could play again sometime. When the front door finally shut after the last child left Cappie immediately went into the living room and sank down on the couch next to Cadence.

"Daddy, can I get up now?" she asked.

"Actually it's time for a nap," said Cappie.

"Really?" Cadence asked.

"Really," Cappie replied as he picked her up and took her upstairs to her room.

Cadence whined a little bit when Cappie first put her in bed but all the excitement from the playgroup must has worn her out because she fell quickly asleep. Cappie quietly crept out of her room and went to check on Casey.

"Hey," she said softly as he entered the room.

"Hey," Cappie replied as he walked over to the bed and laid down next to her.

"From all the yelling and screaming I heard I'm thinking the playgroup didn't go so well," she said with a half smile.

"Oh sure, it was great," Cappie said sarcastically. "Not only did I have one kid who likes to eat and play with dirt but I also learned that girls just don't understand the concept of sharing."

"It took everything I had to not get up and come downstairs to help you," said Casey trying not to laugh at the pitiful look on Cappie's face.

"Deep down I wish you would have," said Cappie as he rested his head back on his pillow.

"Aw, sounds like you need an afternoon nap too," she said scooting closer to him.

"I'm not so sure I even have the time for that," he said with a sigh.

"What's wrong?" Casey asked noticing his expression had changed.

"Beaver called a little bit ago," said Cappie. "He thinks Ashleigh has gone into labor."

"WHAT?" Casey yelled sitting up in the bed.

"You need to lie back down," said Cappie motioning for Casey to lie back down on the bed.

"But I have to be there," said Casey still sitting up. "My best friend is in labor."

"Just hold up for a bit," said Cappie. "Beaver hadn't even called the doctor when I spoke with him. It may be a false alarm or something."

"Oh god, she's probably terrified," said Casey turning and reaching for the phone. "I told her I was going to be there for her."

"Case, calm down," said Cappie gently taking the phone from her hands. "Beaver is going to call back once he knows something. I need you to just relax and rest. Getting all nervous and worried is not going to be good for you or your blood pressure."

"Well I'm about to put myself into labor so we can be there together then," said Casey.

Cappie laughed.

"What?" Casey asked.

"Do you hear how ridiculous you sound?" he asked, still laughing. "You can't put yourself into labor."

"No, but I can make my blood pressure up so you have to take me back to the hospital and they can admit me," Casey said.

"Do you really want to spend the next month in the hospital?" Cappie asked.

Casey took a deep breath realizing she was defeated.

"No, I don't," she said with a sigh.

"Then I suggest you just lie down and relax at least until we hear something from Beaver or Ashleigh about what is going on," said Cappie.

"Fine," said Casey as she fluffed her pillows and laid back on the bed.

* * *

After Beaver hung up with Cappie he quickly called Dr. Snyder's office. The receptionist informed him that the doctor was already at the hospital and it would just be best to take Ashleigh there so the doctor could look at her.

"God I hope this is a false alarm," mumbled Ashleigh as Beaver pulled out of the driveway.

"False alarm? I don't think so!" said Beaver in a tense voice. "I don't think I could go through this again if they send us home."

"I just don't know if I'm ready Beave," said Ashleigh. "I know Dr. Snyder said I could go into labor earlier because of the twins but I just don't think I'm mentally prepared for this at the moment."

"Well I suggest you start preparing yourself," said Beaver as he took a sharp turn.

"Whoa! Slow down!" said Ashleigh.

"Sorry," said Beaver taking a deep breath. "I just want to get there before anything starts popping out of, well, you know where."

"I don't think I will be that lucky that these babies are going to come out that fast," said Ashleigh. "Remember how long Casey's labor was? Oh man, Casey," Ashleigh mumbled in a soft tone. "She's not going to be able to be here with me is she?"

"I don't think so," said Beaver turning to look at her. "I called Cap and he said he was going to try to come if he could but he didn't know."

"Well at least our parents are on their way," said Ashleigh. "I would hate to go through this alone."

"Hey, just because Casey isn't going to be with you doesn't mean that you're going to be alone," said Beaver as he pulled into the hospital parking lot. "I know I've never been through this before but I'm going to do everything I can to be there for you and help you."

"I know you are," said Ashleigh grabbing his hand. "Everything will be alright."

Once Ashleigh was safely in a wheelchair Beaver parked the car and then pushed her up to the labor and delivery floor. The nurse brought her into one of the rooms and quickly hooked her up to a heart rate monitor for the babies.

"Are you in any pain?" the nurse asking Ashleigh.

"Not really," Ashleigh replied. "I'm feeling more pressure than anything."

"OK, let me know if the pain gets worse," the nurse replied. "I believe Dr. Snyder is finishing up with a delivery and then she'll be in to see you."

"OK thanks," said Ashleigh as the nurse left the room.

There was an awkward silence in the room, only the babies' heart rates echoing off the walls.

"Well, now what?" Beaver asked as he sat in the chair next to Ashleigh's bed.

"Now we wait I guess," Ashleigh replied shrugging her shoulders.

"OK," Beaver replied, bringing silence to the room once again.

About a minute later Beaver grew irritated with the silence and turned on the television. He quickly found a football game and reclined back in the chair to watch it. But he soon felt Ashleigh glaring next to him.

"What?" he asked turning to her.

"Last time I checked I was the one in labor here," she said. "Do we really have to watch a football game?"

"Please, just for a little while?" Beaver asked as he rolled his bottom lip down to pout.

"Fine," said Ashleigh as she rolled onto her side to get a little more comfortable in bed.

About a half an hour later Ashleigh was just about asleep when Dr. Snyder came into the room.

"Well hello you two," she said picking up Ashleigh's chart. "I didn't expect to see you guys quite this soon."

"Is that bad?" Beaver asked in a worried tone as he turned off the TV to give the doctor his undivided attention.

"No, not at all," said Dr. Snyder reassuring him. "I was thinking I would see you guys a little later in the week, that's all. How are you feeling Ashleigh?"

"A little sleepy," Ashleigh replied. "And a little scared."

"It's normal to be a little scared," said Dr. Snyder as she looked over Ashleigh's chart. "Now when did your water break exactly?"

"Around two or three hours ago I guess," Ashleigh replied.

"And have you been having contractions?" Dr. Snyder asked.

"Not really," Ashleigh replied. "Just some pressure in my stomach but not really any pain."

"Hmmmm," Dr. Snyder mumbled.

"Uh oh, that doesn't sound good," said Beaver with a sigh.

"You need to stop being so negative," said Dr. Snyder with a small laugh. "You know I would tell you guys immediately if I thought anything was wrong. Right now I'm just thinking things through."

"OK, sorry," Beaver replied.

"Let me see if you're dilated," said Dr. Snyder as she put gloves on.

Ashleigh winced a little as she checked but the process went quickly.

"I have to say, I'm a little puzzled as to why your water broke," said the doctor as she took off the gloves. "You're barely even a centimeter dilated."

"So what does that mean?" Ashleigh asked.

"I think it means those babies aren't quite ready to come out," Dr. Snyder replied.

"Oh god, you're going to send us home aren't you?" Beaver began to panic. "You're going to make me go through the crazy drive here again, I—"

Dr. Snyder walked over and put her hand on Beaver's shoulder.

"Everything is going to be just fine," she said making Beaver take a deep breath. "Normally I would send a patient back home who is hardly dilated. But since her water broke I think it's better to be safe and keep her here."

"Oh thank you!" said Beaver putting his hand on top of Dr. Snyder's. He almost considered hugging her at that moment but figured it would have been a little inappropriate since he really didn't know her too well.

"No problem," said Dr. Snyder as she turned her attention back to Ashleigh. "I am going to keep the heart rate monitors on you and we'll get an IV started to get some fluids in you."

"OK," Ashleigh nodded her head. "Any idea of when we can expect some progress?"

"Well that's something we're just going to have to wait and see," Dr. Snyder replied. "It's possible that you may not feel any contractions for a couple of days from now. It's also possible you could move very rapidly but being that this is your first pregnancy I would have to say we're going to be waiting a little bit. I'll come and check on you before I leave tonight."

"Thanks doc," said Beaver as Dr. Snyder exited the room.

He then got up and sat on the edge of Ashleigh's bed.

"You OK?" he asked looking into her eyes.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Ashleigh replied putting her hand on her stomach. "I just want everything to be OK. And I hate to say this but I really hope I start feeling contractions soon."

"I'm sure you'll regret that statement once you actually get them," said Beaver with a small laugh.

"Yeah, you're probably right," said Ashleigh smiling back at him.

Just then Ashleigh's cell phone rang.

"It's Casey," she said picking it up and looking at it.

"You two talk, I'm going to go grab a soda and call our parents to let them know what is going on," said Beaver as he kissed Ashleigh on the forehead and left the room.

"Hey girl," Ashleigh answered the phone.

"It's been like three hours Ash!" yelled Casey. "I'm going crazy over here! What is going on?"

"Calm down," said Ashleigh with a laugh. "Everything is OK."

"OK, that's good to know," said Casey with a sigh of relief. "Are you at the hospital?"

"Yeah, we're here," Ashleigh replied. "It turns out my water broke but I haven't really started to have any contractions yet or not. Dr. Snyder was contemplating on sending me home but I think Beaver's crying talked her into keeping me."

"Beave's been crying already?" Casey asked.

"Well, not really crying," Ashleigh replied with a small laugh. "He just didn't want to have to deal with taking me back to the house and going through bringing me to the hospital again. He's just being extremely nervous."

"Somehow that really doesn't surprise me," said Casey also with a small laugh.

There was a slight pause in the conversation.

"Man, I really wish you were here Case," said Ashleigh with a sigh. "I really need someone calm here to be with me. Beaver is freaking out already, I can only imagine how he's going to be once labor actually starts."

"You have no idea how much I want to be there for you Ash," said Casey. "I've been sitting here for the past hour thinking about how I can make it so I can be there for you."

"It's safest for you to be at home Case," said Ashleigh. "You have to think about yourself and the baby before me."

"That's kind of hard to do when you're my best friend Ash," said Casey.

"Aw, don't make me cry," said Ashleigh with a sniffle. "I will be fine. I promise I'll call and keep you updated with everything."

"You better," said Casey. "And make sure you get a lot of rest now. You'll need it to get both of those babies out of there."

"I was just about asleep a little bit ago actually before the doctor came in," Ashleigh replied with a yawn.

"Well I'll let you go so you can get some sleep," said Casey.

"Alright," Ashleigh replied. "Dr. Snyder said she would be in later this evening so I'll call you after she comes in and let you know if anything changes."

"Sound good," Casey replied. "I love you Ash."

"Love you too Case," said Ashleigh. "Talk to you later."

"Bye," said Casey as she hung up the phone.

* * *

_**A/N: Hey everyone! Wow, it sure has been a while and I really appologize for that. I kind of lost the writing spark I had :0( I have actually had this part of the chapter typed up for a while now. I wanted to add a little more to it to make it a little more exciting before I posted it but I'm kind of stuck...LoL! So since it's the one year anniversary of me starting the story (thanks Bettakappa!) I figured I would go ahead and post what I have right now for you guys. Maybe you can give me some suggestions as to where you would like the story to continue going or what you think will happen next if you want.**_

_**Not sure when I'll get another chapter up...hopefully it will be sooner than this one but thanks to all the readers who continued to comment and send me messages wondering if I was going to continue with the story...it really means a lot to me. :0)**_


	139. Stand By Me

STAND BY ME

A day passed without labor contractions for Ashleigh. But she and Beaver made sure to keep Cappie on high alert. Carrying his cell phone and the house phone around with him was a necessity in case something changed. He hadn't heard anything from Beaver for a few hours which he thought was strange but he shrugged it off thinking they were just taking a nap. Speaking of naps, Casey and Cadence were both upstairs taking a nap giving Cappie some much needed time to catch up on the house work and laundry. With all the craziness of playgroup and Ashleigh going into labor and frequent trips to the hospital to calm Beaver down he really didn't have much of a chance to keep the house up.

Cappie was about to sit down on the couch and start folding his first load of laundry for the day when the doorbell rang. He at first instinctively reached for the phone thinking that was the noise he had heard but realized quickly it wasn't when all he heard was a dial tone.

"Who on earth could this be?" he mumbled to himself as he got up and walked towards the door.

He unlocked the door and almost fell to the ground when he saw who it was.

"Mom?" he asked in a surprised tone.

"Well nice to see you too," she said inviting herself inside and giving Cappie a hug.

"Sorry, you just took me by surprise," said Cappie hugging her back. "What brings you here?"

"You of course," she said letting go of him and walking into the kitchen.

"Uh…."Cappie hesitated as he shut the front door but it was too late. His mom already saw the mess.

"Charles Cappington," she scolded. "This place is atrocious!"

"I know mom, I know, I'm sorry," said Cappie as he walked over to the couch.

"I know you can be messy Cap but I guess it's Casey who really holds the fort down around here huh?" she asked as she sat on the couch next to him.

"Yeah, I'm kind of drowning without her," he said with a sigh.

"And I'm sure she has no idea there are dishes piled a mile high in the sink and piles of clothes on the couch," said Mrs. Cappington with a small smile.

"No, Casey hasn't been downstairs in over a week. And the clothes aren't usually there," said Cappie. "I was just sitting down to fold them."

Mrs. Cappington reached down and picked up a white shirt with flowers on it she remembered buying Cadence but it was strangely now a light blue color. She gave Cappie a confused look.

"Yeah, I guess you can't wash white clothes with brand new pairs of jeans," he said leaning back on the couch. "Story of my life recently."

"I could tell that by the phone call we had the other day," she said. "That's why I'm here. It sounded like you could use some help."

"Don't you and dad have some sort of protest to go to or hippie rally to attend?" Cappie asked.

"Nope, I'm all yours," Mrs. Cappington replied. "Your dad recently took a job as an assistant park ranger and he loves it. So we're going to stay put for a little while."

"Wow, that's certainly a change," said Cappie in a surprised tone.

"Yeah, I was shocked too," said Mrs. Cappington with a laugh. "But I realized that this was for the best because now I'm free to come and help you and Casey. I'm here for as long as you need me."

"That's really generous of you, mom, but I kind of want to show Casey that I can do this on my own," said Cappie.

Mrs. Cappington looked around the room and then back at Cappie.

"I think if Casey walked down those stairs right now because she had to go to the hospital she would have a heart attack looking at this place," said Mrs. Cappington. "Let me just stay and help you out for a little bit and at least get this place cleaned up. And if you want me to leave in a couple of days I will."

Cappie just kind of stared and looked at his mom for a minute until a smile grew on his face.

"That sounds great," he said leaning in to give his mom a hug. "Thanks mom."

"You're very welcome," said Mrs. Cappington as she hugged him back. "And don't you be afraid to ask me if you need anything. I'm here for you."

"Daddy!" the two of them heard from the baby monitor. "Daddy!"

"Looks like someone has woken up from her nap," said Cappie as he backed away from his mom. "You want to come with me to go and get her?"

"Sure," said Mrs. Cappington as the two of them stood up and began walking upstairs.

"Daddy!" shouted Cadence as soon as she saw Cappie walk into her room.

"Hey sweetheart," said Cappie. "I brought someone with me to see you."

"Who?" Cadence asked.

Cappie's mom then walked into the room.

"Ma-maw!" Cadence shouted as she got off her bed and ran to give Mrs. Cappington a hug.

"Hey my little muffin! How was your nap?" Mrs. Cappington asked.

"Good," Cadence replied. "Why are you here?"

"Well I'm here to see you of course," said Mrs. Cappington. "We talk on the phone so much I think it's about time we have some fun in person too."

"What can we do?" Cadence asked.

"Whatever you want," Mrs. Cappington replied. "We could go to the park or play with your dolls or maybe go to McDonalds for a Happy Meal."

"Yay fun!" exclaimed Cadence with a smile.

"Well grandma is going to be here for a while so we don't have to do all those things right now," said Cappie trying to calm Cadence's excitement.

"OK," said Cadence nodding her head. "Is mommy awake?"

"How about daddy goes and checks on mommy and you and I go downstairs and get a snack?" Mrs. Cappington asked.

"OK," said Cadence taking Mrs. Cappington's hand and leading her to the stairs.

Cappie straighten the blankets on Cadence's bed and went to go and check on Casey. He heard the television on as he walked towards the room and assumed Casey was awake. He slowly opened the door to see her sitting on the edge of the bed.

"Hey, are you OK?" he said rushing over to her.

"Yes, yes, I'm fine," said Casey assuring him. "I just got back from going to the bathroom and wanted to sit and rest for a second instead of laying back down in the bed."

"Oh, OK," said Cappie sitting next to her. "Can I get you anything?"

"No, I'm good," said Casey. "Did the phone ring while I was asleep? Have you heard anything from Ash and Beave?"

"No, haven't heard anything," Cappie replied. "But we do have an unexpected visitor."

"What? Who?" Casey asked turning to look at Cappie.

"My mom," Cappie replied.

"You're mom?" Casey asked in just as much shock as Cappie was.

"Yeah, she called a couple of days ago to catch up on things and I guess she could hear that I was kind of stressed," said Cappie looking down at the ground.

"Stressed?" Casey asked. "You haven't seemed stressed to me."

"Yeah, well, I guess I was hiding it from you," Cappie replied. "I didn't want you to worry."

"Cap, you should have told me," said Casey. "I could have called my mom or dad or even Rusty to take Cadence for a bit for you."

"I know," Cappie replied. "But it doesn't matter much now. Mom said she could stay for as long as we needed her."

"Wow, why all of a sudden does she care so much?" Casey asked.

"Beats me," said Cappie shrugging his shoulders. "But the extra help will be very nice."

There was a brief silence between the two of them.

"I'm, I'm sorry Cap," Casey said breaking the silence.

Cappie turned to her to see tears flowing down her cheeks.

"What are you sorry about?" he asked as he reached up and wiped the tears off her cheek.

"For being on bed rest and not being able to help you," said Casey with a deep breath. "I feel like I've failed the family."

"You haven't failed the family," said Cappie. "If anything you're making a sacrifice to help the family. I would rather be stressed any day than having to lay up here in bed for days and days at a time."

"Yeah, I guess it's really starting to get to me," she said as she reached up and wiped more tears out of her eyes.

"Just hang on a little longer," said Cappie putting his hand on Casey's belly. "It'll all be worth it in the end."

"I know," said Casey placing her hand on top of Cappie's. "The thought of a healthy little one in here is what is keeping me from going completely insane in this bedroom."

"You're doing an amazing job," said Cappie. "And you know I'm always here for whatever you need."

"Well now that I think about it some ice cream sounds good," said Casey.

"I picked up some chocolate and strawberry at the grocery store the other day, which would you like?" Cappie asked.

"Strawberry," Casey replied.

"OK, you get back in bed and I'll be back in a bit."

Cappie turned and gave Casey a kiss on the cheek before he stood up and walked out of the room. He walked in the kitchen to see his mom and Cadence sitting at the kitchen table.

"Casey is up," he said. "She wants some ice cream."

"I hope she's OK with me being here," said Mrs. Cappington.

"She's happy that you're here," Cappie replied taking the ice cream out of the freezer. "She didn't know how stressed I was but now that she's knows she's glad you're here to help."

"That's good," Mrs. Cappington replied.

"Can I go see mommy?" Cadence asked.

"I'm sure she would love to see you," said Mrs. Cappington.

"I'll let you take her the ice cream as long as you don't eat it on your way up to her," said Cappie winking at Cadence.

"I wouldn't do that daddy," said Cadence with a smile.

"I know, you—" Cappie began but was cut off by the phone ringing.

He pulled the phone out of his pocket.

"Hey Beave," he answered the phone.

"Cap, it's starting!" said Beaver in a frantic voice. "You need to get here now!"

"OK, hold on, calm down," said Cappie. "What exactly is going on?"

"She's started having contractions," said Beaver. "And she's in a lot of pain and I'm not sure what to do."

"There's not much you can do," said Cappie. "All you can do is hold her hand or rub her back to make her feel better."

"Can you just come down here?" Beaver whined. "You can even bring Cadence if you want."

"I've got someone who can watch Cadence," Cappie replied. "I'll be there in a little bit."

"Thanks Cap," said Beaver. "See you in a little bit."

"Go comfort your wife," said Cappie with a small laugh.

"I will, bye," said Beaver.

"What's going on?" asked Mrs. Cappington after Cappie hung up the phone.

"It looks like Ashleigh has started her labor," Cappie replied. "Beaver wants me to head down to the hospital for a little bit."

"You should get going, I can handle things here," said Mrs. Cappington.

"I just want to go and tell Casey real quick first," said Cappie as he took the bowl of ice cream and headed towards the stairs.

"Hey, daddy said I could take it," whined Cadence.

"It's OK dear, we'll go up and visit mommy as soon as daddy leaves," Mrs. Cappington replied.

Cappie rushed into the bedroom and handed Casey the bowl of ice cream.

"Ashleigh is in labor now isn't she?" Casey asked in a sad voice.

"From what Beaver said she is," Cappie replied. "He wants me to go to the hospital but I'm sure it will be a while before the babies actually are born."

"I really wish I could be there," Casey sighed as she took a bite of her ice cream.

"I'll keep you updated," said Cappie. "And my mom is taking care of Cadence but Cadence wanted to see you so I'm sure they'll be up to visit after I leave."

"OK, just be sure you call and let me know what is going on," said Casey.

"I will," said Cappie leaning down and giving her a quick kiss on the lips. "I love you."

"Love you too," Casey replied as she watched Cappie rush out of the room.

* * *

"Cappie said he is on his way," said Beaver as he walked back into Ashleigh's room.

"That's good," was all Ashleigh replied.

"Do you want a back rub?" Beaver asked. "It might make you feel better."

"No, I'm actually feeling really nauseous," said Ashleigh reaching for the pan on the table next to her bed.

Beaver walked over and sat on the edge of Ashleigh's bed and took the pan out of her hands.

"I'll hold it for you," said Beaver.

"Thanks," said Ashleigh giving him a weak smile.

She then had a wave of nausea and began to vomit in the pan.

"It's OK," said Beaver softly as he made sure Ashleigh's hair was out of the way.

A couple of minutes later Dr. Snyder walked into the room with a nurse.

"How are things going Ashleigh?" asked Dr. Snyder.

"Not well," said Ashleigh as she took a sip of water.

"She's been throwing up a lot," said Beaver. "I hope that is OK."

"For some women nausea is normal," said Dr. Snyder. "I'll have the nurse give you some medicine for nausea. Have you been up walking at all?"

"I haven't really felt like walking," Ashleigh replied.

"You probably should start walking as it's best for you to keep moving at this point in time," said Dr. Snyder.

"I'll take her for a walk as soon as you're done," Beaver told Dr. Snyder.

"Ashleigh I'm going to check and see how many centimeters you are dilated," said Dr. Snyder as she put her gloves on.

Ashleigh laid back in the bed and into position for Dr. Snyder to check. She winced a little during the procedure but it was over quickly.

"You're making progress," said Dr. Snyder. "Two and a half centimeters."

"That's it?" Ashleigh and Beaver asked in unison.

"Yes, that's it," said Dr. Snyder with a laugh at the way the two of them asked in the same surprised tone in their voices. "Babies come out when they are ready. Half of the battle is waiting."

"So I can't get the epidural yet?" Ashleigh asked.

"No, I'm afraid not yet," Dr. Snyder replied. "But I would encourage you to go for a walk down the hall and even get in the whirlpool which may help you relax."

"OK," Ashleigh replied as she took the medicine the nurse handed her.

"I'll be back later to check on you," said Dr. Snyder as her and the nurse left the room.

"Well, let's go for a walk and see how that goes," said Beaver.

Ashleigh slowly sat up on the side of the bed and reached again for the pan.

"You better take the pan with us," said Ashleigh as she handed it to Beaver.

Ashleigh hung onto her IV pole as she stood up and stretched her body.

"Oh man, I feel like I haven't walked in days," she said taking a few short steps.

"Just take your time," said Beaver standing right next to her and putting his arm around her back to support her.

Ashleigh took short steps as she made her way towards the door. Deep down she had no desire to walk. The babies had dropped lower in her abdomen so any kind of standing hurt her back more than anything.

"Oh man, having a contraction," Ashleigh blurted out as she reached for the wall for support while her other hand squeezed the IV pole as hard as she could.

"Deep breaths, breathe through it, you got this," said Beaver giving her as much encouragement as he could.

After the worst of the pain passed Ashleigh was able to make it to the waiting area where some of her family was waiting.

"Holy crap you look like a blimp!" said Ashleigh's sister Grace whom she hadn't seen in a couple of months.

"Thanks sis," said Ashleigh sarcastically as she lowered herself down into one of the chairs in the waiting room.

"Mom and dad left to go grab something to eat," said Terrell, Ashleigh's brother. "They should be back soon."

"I'm really glad you guys could make it," said Ashleigh.

She felt another contraction come on and immediately reached for her brother's hand and squeezed it as hard as she could.

"Ow, ow, ow," whined Terrell until Ashleigh let go. "Dang, you almost broke my throwing hand Ash. Coach would kill me if I came back with a broken hand."

"Oh you're such a baby. I barely even squeezed your hand," said Ashleigh.

"Barely? You certainly don't know your own strength," said Terrell.

"I know it just fine thank you," Ashleigh snapped.

"I caught your game last week Terrell," said Beaver trying to change the subject and prevent a sibling argument. "You were awesome. Five touchdowns and no interceptions, I sure hope the scouts were at that game."

"I'm pretty sure they were," said Terrell with a smile. "I'm definitely entering the draft next year."

"No you're not, you have to finish school first," Grace piped in.

"I can do whatever I want, it's my life," Terrell snapped back.

"Well I talked to mom and dad and they—"

"Here comes another one!" Ashleigh interrupted Grace and reached for someone's hand.

Grace and Terrell backed up as fast as they could but Beaver quickly stepped in and gave Ashleigh his hand.

"You're a good man Beave," said Terrell as they watched Ashleigh breathe through her contraction.

"This is getting intense," said Ashleigh. "I think we should head back to the room."

"I'm ready whenever you are," said Beaver.

"We'll be out here Ash," said Grace as she watched Beaver help Ashleigh up. "And thinking about you every step of the way."

"Thanks guys," said Ashleigh as she began to walk to the door with Beaver.

"I'll keep you guys posted," said Beaver as the two of them walked out of the door.

After they had walked a little ways down the hall and stopped for a contraction Ashleigh turned to Beaver.

"I love my family and everything," she said. "But sometimes I swear all my brother thinks about is football and we can never have a decent conversation without getting into some stupid little fight."

"Well your brother is on his way to being named MVP of the league and possibly getting drafted into the NFL. He's the best quarterback Ohio State has had in years," said Beaver.

"That doesn't give him an excuse to talk about it non-stop though," Ashleigh replied. "He should be thinking about me and his niece and nephew at the moment, not himself."

"Being a previous football player myself I kind of understand where he is coming from but you at least have to give him and your sister credit for being here," Beaver replied. "Speaking of sisters though, why isn't Christina here?"

"Last I heard mom and dad were having a hard time getting a hold of her," Ashleigh replied. "She's somewhere in Paris doing a modeling project so I doubt she'll even make it here for the birth."

Beaver wasn't quite sure how to reply as he felt bad all of Ashleigh's family wasn't here to support her. So he just turned towards Ashleigh's room and the two of them began walking the rest of the way. Once in the room Ashleigh sat back on the edge of the bed.

"I'm pretty sure one of these babies is sticking its foot right in my spine right now," said Ashleigh as she pushed on the side of her back. "And he or she is not moving."

"Let's try the whirlpool," Beaver suggested.

"Can't hurt I guess," said Ashleigh as she got her swimsuit out of the bag she had packed.

Several minutes later both Beaver and Ashleigh were in the whirlpool. Ashleigh was leaning against Beaver as he wrapped his arms around her stomach tightly.

"How does it feel?" Beaver asked.

"Soothing," Ashleigh replied. "The best I've felt in the past couple of hours at least."

"Good," was all Beaver replied.

The two of them rested in the whirlpool for about ten minutes until there was a knock at the door.

"Come on in," said Beaver.

"Hey guys I uh—Whoa!" said Cappie immediately shielding his eyes once he saw the two of them in the whirlpool.

"It's OK Cap, we have bathing suits on," said Beaver with a laugh.

"Yeah but still," said Cappie continuing to shield his eyes. "I don't think Casey and I wanted anyone watching us in the whirlpool together."

"Just take a seat and relax," said Beaver ignoring Cappie's comment.

Cappie took the furthest chair away from the whirlpool in the room and sat down.

"How's Casey?" Ashleigh asked.

"She's good," Cappie replied continuing to avoid eye contact. "My mom actually surprised us and showed up so she's taking care of things while I'm here."

"You're mom?" asked Beaver. "That's a shock."

"Tell me about it," Cappie replied. "But I'll take her help as long as she's willing to give it."

"Well she owes you plenty for all those years she wasn't there for you," said Beaver somewhat bitterly as he knew how distant Cappie's parents have been to him.

Cappie wasn't going to respond to Beaver's comment and defend his parents in any way because deep down Beaver was right. Ashleigh eventually broke the silence with another contraction. She gripped both sides of the whirlpool as tight as she could and let out a loud grunt.

"How on earth did Casey get through these contractions?" Ashleigh asked. "They are hell."

"She did just what you're doing," Cappie replied. "A lot of breathing, squeezing and changing position as much as possible."

"Yeah, I think it's about time I get out of here and try a different position," said Ashleigh.

"I'm going to head out into the waiting room," said Cappie as he stood up and quickly left the room.

"I think we embarrassed him," said Ashleigh with a laugh as she stood up from the whirlpool.

"Definitely," Beaver replied also with a laugh.

The two of them quickly dried off and Ashleigh got back in bed just as Dr. Snyder came back into the room.

"How are you doing Ashleigh?" she asked.

"Hanging in there," Ashleigh replied. "That medicine you gave me for nausea really helped but the contractions are getting a lot worse."

"Let's see if you're ready for that epidural yet," said Dr. Snyder.

Ashleigh got into position as the doctor put her glove on.

"Three centimeters," said Dr. Snyder as she took off her glove.

"At least it's some progress I guess," said Ashleigh trying to look at the bright side of things.

"You can get the epidural when you are four to five centimeters so you're almost there," said Dr. Snyder. "I'll be back in another couple of hours to check you."

Over the next hour Ashleigh did everything she could to relieve the pain. She tried sitting on one of the physioballs, she tried leaning on the bed, standing, laying down, walking but nothing was helping the pain. She was really starting to lose it.

"Oh god it hurts so bad," she yelled loudly from the fetal position in the bed. "Make it stop, please, make it stop."

"Take some deep breaths," said Beaver as he put a warm washcloth on Ashleigh's forehead.

"I don't want to be pregnant anymore," she continued to whine. "I can't do this honey. OH IT HURTS SO BAD!"

By this time Ashleigh was almost up to a scream as she squirmed every way possible in the bed.

"Please make it stop, please," she pleaded, tears now streaming down her face.

"Ash, it's OK, you're doing fine, just a little while longer and you can get the epidural," said Beaver.

"Oh I hate this, I hate this, I can't do this, oh make it stop, please, please," continued Ashleigh, almost getting to the point where she was hysterically crying.

Beaver just stood there numb and paralyzed. He didn't know what to do, he didn't know what to say.

"Why don't I go and get your mom and your sister," said Beaver. "Maybe they can help you."

"Oh make it stop, make it stop," was all Ashleigh continued to moan as she gripped the railing of the bed as hard as she could.

"I'm going to go get them," said Beaver as he quickly exited the room.

He ran down the hall and told Ashleigh's mom and sister Grace to go in her room to help. But instead of Beaver going back with them he pulled Cappie into an empty room and shut the door.

"What is going on?" Cappie asked, confused by Beaver's actions.

"I can't do this Cap," said Beaver as he began to pace around the room. "I'm going crazy. I can't help her. Nothing I say is helping, nothing I do is helping. I just can't do this."

"Beave, you're just getting nervous," said Cappie. "It's completely normal."

"Oh no, this is nowhere near nervous," said Beaver now walking faster. "This is me freaking out. This is me having an anxiety attack. I can't do this. Why did I ever think I could do this? What was I thinking?"

"What are you talking about Beave?" Cappie asked as he watched his best friend dart back and forth across the room. "You're going to be great at this."

"Nope, nope, no I'm not," Beaver stuttered. "I can't even help my wife when she is in pain. What am I going to do if I can't get the babies to stop crying? Why did I ever think I could be a father?"

"Alright Beave, it's time to get a grip," said Cappie as he stopped Beaver in mid stance and put his hands on his shoulders. "You are going to be the best damn father for those babies because they are your children. They are going to love you unconditionally no matter what."

"But I feel completely clueless," said Beaver. "I don't know what to do."

"Parenting is a learning process," Cappie replied. "Do you think I knew what do to when I first held Cadence? No, I was scared out of my mind! But as soon as I held that precious little girl in my arms all my fears went away and the same thing is going to happen for you."

"You make is sound so simple Cap," said Beaver.

"That's because it is," Cappie replied. "It's like deep down all of us men have a father button inside of us that turns on once we become a father. I know for a fact that you are going to be OK. Look at how well you did with Cadence when you held her for the first time or fed her a bottle for the first time. You're even a step ahead with the practice you've had with her. You are going to be an amazing father Beave, you just have to believe in yourself."

"But what about Ashleigh?" Beaver asked. "She's in there screaming in pain and there is absolutely nothing I can do."

"Sure there is," Cappie replied. "You can be in there with her."

There was a pause in the conversation as Beaver just stared at Cappie like he was saying something monumental.

"Standing in the room talking to me and freaking out about nonsense is not helping Ashleigh," continued Cappie. "She needs you more than anyone to be right by her side right now."

"I, I, I guess you're right," said Beaver letting Cappie's words sink in. "I guess I should get back in the room then huh?"

"Yes, you should," Cappie replied.

Beaver immediately wrapped his arms around Cappie for a hug.

"Thanks man," said Beaver. "I don't know what I would do without you."

"You're welcome," Cappie replied returning the hug. "Now go help your wife through this labor."

"OK," said Beaver as he turned and slowly walked towards the door.

"Oh and Beave," said Cappie as Beaver opened the door.

Beaver turned back around and looked at Cappie.

"It gets a hell of a lot better once the epidural comes," said Cappie with a small laugh.

"Amen brother, A-men," Beaver replied also with a small laugh as he walked out the door and back towards Ashleigh's room.

* * *

_**A/N: Yay for getting this chapter up much quicker than I did the last one! LoL! I'm glad you guys are still around and thank you very much for the reviews for the last chapter! Hope you liked this one too :0) We're getting close to Ashleigh having her babies...woo hoo!**_


	140. New Beginnings

NEW BEGINNINGS

Things at the Cappington household had calmed down for the night. Having Cappie's mom there made it possible for Cappie to stay with Ashleigh and Beaver and for Casey remain to in bed like she was supposed to. Casey had just kissed Cadence goodnight and was about to start reading one of her magazines when the phone rang.

"Hey Cap," she answered knowing who it was.

"How is everything at home?" Cappie asked.

"Things are just fine," Casey replied. "Your mom is probably reading a story to Cadence and I'm just here in bed as usual."

"Have you spent any time with mom yet?" Cappie asked.

"No, not really," Casey replied. "She made some dinner which was really good. Cadence spent most of the evening in the room with me and we had a good time watching Finding Nemo and coloring some pictures for Ashleigh's new babies."

"What did mom do?" Cappie asked.

"I'm not completely sure but she was downstairs for most of the evening," Casey replied. "She said she was straightening up some things down there and then maybe she was watching some TV or something."

Cappie kind of froze when he remembered how much the downstairs was a mess when he left and he kind of felt bad if his mom really did clean it all up for him.

"How are things there at the hospital?" Casey asked interrupting Cappie's thoughts. "I haven't heard from you or Ashleigh for a while."

"Things have been interesting I guess you could say," Cappie replied.

There was a brief pause in the conversation.

"Do you mind elaborating on that?" Casey finally asked.

"Well, I just dealt with Beaver's first major freak out," Cappie replied with a small laugh.

"Uh oh, what happened?" Casey asked.

"I guess Ashleigh is in a lot of pain and he's worried because nothing he can say or do is helping her," Cappie replied. "And then he began questioning whether he could be a father and well, you know Beaver, he's just getting nervous."

"Were you able to help calm him down?" Casey asked.

"Yeah, I told him that he doesn't have anything to worry about," Cappie replied. "Ashleigh has great doctors looking after her and I think deep down Beaver knows he's going to be a good father. Once those babies are born I'm sure he'll realize it."

"So is Ashleigh close to having the babies then?" Casey asked.

"I don't think it's going to be any time really soon but I guess you never know," Cappie replied.

"I just wish I could be there with her," said Casey with a sigh. "That's the way things were supposed to be. I'm supposed to be there for her as her best friend and someone who has been through this before."

"I know it's hard," said Cappie. "But you know you staying there is best for both you and the baby. As much as you love Ashleigh you have to think about your health before her."

"She's probably so scared though Cap," said Casey.

"I'm not saying that she isn't," said Cappie. "But she has her family here and contrary to what Beaver thinks, I think he's doing a great job being there for her too. If anything you should stop worrying because it can affect your blood pressure."

"I took my blood pressure a little bit ago and I'm fine," Casey stressed.

"OK, I'm glad to hear that," Cappie replied. "I know I probably sound like a broken record but I just want to make sure that you are safe and the baby is safe and nothing is going to happen to either of you."

"I know Cap," said Casey. "And—"

"Hang on a second Case," said Cappie interrupting her.

Casey listened to some muffled voices in the background on the phone for a few seconds until Cappie came back.

"Ashleigh's sister just came in and said that the doctor is going to give Ashleigh the epidural now," said Cappie.

"That's great," Casey replied. "I'm sure she'll feel a lot better now."

"And hopefully her feeling better will calm Beaver down a little bit too," said Cappie.

"Wow, I can't believe it's almost time for her to have the babies," said Casey. "You have to call and keep me updated on what is going on."

"I certainly will," Cappie replied. "I'm going to get going now though. I'm sure I'll call you back in a little bit once I know a little bit more."

"Sounds good," said Casey. "Love you Cap."

"Love you too," Cappie replied. "I'll call you later."

"Bye," said Casey as she hung up the phone and set it back on the nightstand next to her.

A few minutes later there was a knock on the door.

"Come in," said Casey sitting up a little more in the bed.

"Hey, I heard the phone ring," said Mrs. Cappington as she walked into the room. "Any news on the babies?"

"Not really," Casey replied. "She's still in labor and just got her epidural so now we're just playing the waiting game."

"Yeah, that's certainly one of the hardest things to do," said Mrs. Cappington as she sat on Cappie's side of the bed.

"Did Cadence go to bed nicely for you?" Casey asked.

"Of course," Mrs. Cappington replied. "I only made it halfway through the story and she was out like a light. She really is just a precious little girl."

"Yeah, she is certainly our pride and joy," said Casey with a smile.

"I can't believe how fast she has grown up," said Mrs. Cappington. "I feel like it was just yesterday she was born."

"Well, you haven't really been around her a whole lot," said Casey.

There was an awkward pause in the conversation as Cappie's mom looked down at the bed and began to play with the sheet with her hands.

"I'm sorry," said Casey when she realized what she had said. "I didn't mean for that to sound harsh or anything."

"No, no, it's OK. I deserve it," said Mrs. Cappington looking back up at Casey. "It's true; Cappie's dad and I haven't been around very much to see Cadence grow up. You were just stating the facts."

"I guess you and I have never really had the friendliest of conversations huh?" Casey asked. "I believe the last time was when Cappie was in the hospital after the fire."

"Definitely not my proudest moment," said Mrs. Cappington appearing a little embarrassed.

There was another awkward pause with both Casey and Mrs. Cappington now avoiding eye contact with each other.

"I want you to know," said Mrs. Cappington now looking at Casey. "That Cappie's dad and I really think the world of you. "

"Thanks, that's nice of you to say," said Casey with a small smile, now making eye contact with Mrs. Cappington.

"Honestly, this whole whirlwind of events really threw us off and it was hard for me to come around and really see it," said Mrs. Cappington. "We always viewed Cappie as a free spirit like us. We expected him to stay in college for a few more years and then maybe travel the world with us for a bit before settling down."

"And I came along and kind of screwed up all those plans, huh?" Casey asked.

"Yes, but not in a bad way," Mrs. Cappington replied. "I knew there was something special about you from the first time Cappie told us about you his freshman year. It was so cute. I'll never forget when he called me and said 'mom, I met this girl and she is amazing.' I don't think Cappie had ever told me about any girl he had dated or liked or anything before you. So I knew when he said that to me that there was something really special about you."

"Aw, that's really sweet," said Casey with a smile.

"I think my problem has always been wanting Cappie to follow in our footsteps," said Mrs. Cappington. "And I tend to get upset when that doesn't happen and I hate to admit that a lot of that disappointment has been targeted on you over the past couple of years."

"But you just said you and Mr. Cappington think the world of me," said Casey becoming a little confused.

"Now we do," said Mrs. Cappington. "But it has taken us a lot of soul searching and meditation to realize that this is best for Cappie. I just want you to know that we are fully supportive of everything you two do and will do everything we can to be more involved in your lives."

"That's so great to hear," said Casey. "I know Cappie will be so happy to see you guys more often."

"Seeing Cadence today really made me see how much we've missed," continued Mrs. Cappington. "She is like a mirror image of Cappie, in the female form that is."

Both of the women let out a small laugh.

"Her little round face and bouncy brown curls and blue eyes, oh my those blue eyes!"

"Tell me about it," said Casey. "It's so hard to say no sometimes when she looks at you with those pouty blue eyes."

"I went through the same thing with Cappie," said Mrs. Cappington with a nod. "And who knows, maybe the new baby will have them too."

"Gosh I hope not," said Casey with a laugh. "I'm not sure what I'll do having to look at three sets of those eyes every day!"

"I'm sure you'll get used to it," said Mrs. Cappington as she reached her hand out and placed it on Casey's stomach.

The two of them immediately looked up at each other. It was a moment that they had never shared together like this and as awkward as it seemed at first, it was somewhat comforting for Casey.

"Oh, I'm so sorry," said Mrs. Cappington taking her hand away. "I just kind of got caught up in the moment."

"No, it's OK," said Casey reaching for her hand and putting it back on her stomach. "He's actually kicking right where your hand was. I think he likes his grandma already."

"Oh my! I feel it!" said Mrs. Cappington with a smile. "That's my other grandchild in there."

"Sure is," said Casey. "He doesn't seem to move as much as Cadence did but he knows when to do it. And I think he already has a knack for Cappie's voice. Almost every time Cappie says something loud he just starts kicking away."

"I know we didn't feel like you and Cappie were ready to have a second baby at first," said Mrs. Cappington moving her hand off Casey's stomach again. "But you guys have really proven us wrong. You've got a great house in a great neighborhood and Cappie has a wonderful job working with Beaver. And there is always something special about the two of you. This next bundle of joy is only going to bring everyone even closer together, I just know it."

"It's been a tough road for us to get here but I certainly wouldn't change anything for the world," said Casey now rubbing her own stomach. "I just can't wait until he gets here."

"When are you due exactly?" Mrs. Cappington asked.

"February 20th is the date the doctor gave us," said Casey. "But with the issues I've been having with the blood pressure and everything it's possible he may come a little earlier."

"Even still, that's a month away," said Mrs. Cappington. "It must be difficult having to spend the time on bed rest."

"This has been one of the worst times of my life honestly," said Casey with a little sadness in her voice. "I just want to get up and play with Cadence or go for a walk with Cappie or even go to the grocery store. Anything to get me out of this house and out of this bed."

"Is there anything I can do to make it more comfortable for you or anything?" Mrs. Cappington asked.

"No, Cappie has pretty much taken care of all that," said Casey. "He moved the bigger television up here and hooked up the DVR and DVD players. He's also bought me several books and magazines to help pass the time. As nice as it is to have these things though, they are kind of getting old."

"I was on bed rest when I was pregnant with Cappie for a bit actually," said Mrs. Cappington.

"Really?" asked Casey. "What happened?"

"I had a slight tear in the placenta that they noticed on one of my last doctor's appointments," Mrs. Cappington replied. "They wanted to make sure that it didn't tear anymore so they put me on bed rest for the last two weeks before he was born."

"So how did you get through it?" Casey asked.

"Same thing you're doing actually," Mrs. Cappington replied. "Lots of reading and watching television. But I think the thing that helped the most was having Cappie's father there. He was always rubbing my back, getting food for whatever cravings I was having and just being there as someone to talk to."

"You're making me wish Cappie was here," said Casey sadly looking down at her stomach. "I know he needs to be there for Ashleigh and Beaver but I'm really missing him too."

"I know you are," said Mrs. Cappington as she rubbed Casey's hand.

Casey looked up and smiled at Mrs. Cappington.

"You know, I always imagined having a great relationship with my husband's mother," said Casey. "I wanted to be like the daughter you never had but with all the animosity between us I didn't think it would ever happen."

"Well like I said, I think it's time to change things around a little bit," said Mrs. Cappington. "You are a wonderful person Casey and I'm lucky to have you as my daughter. I hope from here on out we can have a better relationship."

"I would want nothing more than that," said Casey with a smile. "You are a great person and you raised one hell of a son and I hope we can only become closer and closer as the years go on."

"That sounds perfect to me," said Mrs. Cappington, also smiling.

Casey then reached her arms out and Mrs. Cappington leaned towards her and they hugged.

"I love you Casey and I want you to know that," said Mrs. Cappington. "Things are going to be different from now on."

"I love you too," Casey replied as they broke apart.

"I think the little man there kicked me when we were hugging," said Mrs. Cappington with a laugh.

"He's—"

Casey was interrupted by the phone ringing.

"One second," she said to Mrs. Cappington as she clicked on the phone. "Hey Cap."

"Hey Case, I just wanted to call and let you know that Ashleigh is progressing pretty quickly with labor," said Cappie. "The doctor just checked and she's only a couple of centimeters away from being able to push."

"Wow, that is fast!" said Casey. "Have you seen her? How is she doing?"

"I was just in the room and she's doing OK," said Cappie. "Her pain is pretty well controlled with the epidural but I think she's starting to get really nervous now. She wanted to call and talk to you but I couldn't get any service on my phone in her room."

"Well what is her room number? I can call her at the hospital," said Casey.

"It's probably not the best time right now," said Cappie. "Her family is in there and like I said, she's really nervous at the moment."

"I could help calm her down though," said Casey. "That's what I do best."

"I know you do honey," said Cappie. "But like I said, she's got a lot of people in there right now. I promise I'll keep you posted and if Ashleigh has a moment I'll have her call you."

"Alright fine," said Casey in a grumpy tone.

"I'm headed down to the cafeteria with Ashleigh's brother," said Cappie ignoring Casey's current mood. "I'll call you later."

"Bye," said Casey as she hung up the phone and threw it on the bed beside her.

"Everything alright?" Mrs. Cappington asked.

"Sure, everything is just fine," said Casey in a sarcastic voice. "Everything is just fine for everyone else in the world but me! Just fine!"

Mrs. Cappington didn't respond because she wasn't really sure what to say. It was like Casey's mood just changed with a flip of a switch.

"I'm sorry," Casey finally said realizing she had just blew up at Mrs. Cappington. "I'm just really frustrated with being here at the moment. My best friend is about to have twins and I can't be there for her to help her or experience the joy with her or anything. This is killing me. I want to be at that hospital."

"So then go to the hospital," stated Mrs. Cappington matter-of-factly.

"We can't just go to the hospital," said Casey. "Cadence is already in bed and asleep and I think my doctor would kill me if she saw me walking around there."

"I didn't necessarily mean 'we' when I said go to the hospital," said Mrs. Cappington. "I can stay here with Cadence and you can go."

"I'm pretty sure driving is on that list of things I'm not allowed to do," said Casey.

"That's what ambulances are for," said Mrs. Cappington with a smirk.

"Are you suggesting that I fake feeling something wrong with the baby to get the ambulance to come here and pick me up and take me to the hospital?" Casey asked.

"That is exactly what I'm suggesting," said Mrs. Cappington. "Therefore you would already be there and share in the experience of your best friend having her babies."

"I like the way you think mom," said Casey smiling back at her.

"Then let's get you to that hospital," said Mrs. Cappington picking up the phone.

* * *

_**A/N: Hey everyone! Yay for the new season starting up last week huh? I thought it was a good episode and now I'm just waiting patiently for Cappie and Casey to get back together right? LoL! Anyway, seeing the new season got my writing spark going again so I thought I would post a new chapter! Hope you like this one and the interaction I wrote between Casey and Cappie's mother. As always, drop a review if you wish :0) Thanks for reading!**_


	141. Nerve of Sorrow

NERVE OF SORROW

Once the epidural was put in Ashleigh felt a lot better. The pain was still there but it was much less than what it had been. She almost felt like she wouldn't have made it much further if they didn't give her the epidural. The pain was unbearable and nothing was helping. She looked up to see Beaver sleeping in the chair next to her. She smiled just thinking of everything he did to try and make her feel better. She could tell he was stressed and even though this was probably a time he shouldn't be sleeping, she let him. She figured it would make him more awake once the time actually comes to deliver the babies. Thinking of the word babies made her heart skip a beat. It had done this over the past couple of hours. She got a little nervous every time she thought of having to deliver not one but two babies and then after that being able to take care of two babies seemed even more of a challenge she still wasn't sure she was up for.

A knock at the door interrupted her thoughts.

"Come in," she said in a loud whisper as to not wake Beaver up.

"I got a message that one of my best friends was in labor here," said Rebecca as she walked into the room.

"Bex! Oh my gosh it's so good to see you!" said Ashleigh probably louder than she should have but Beaver slept like a log, not even moving at the noise.

"I told you I wouldn't miss this for the world," said Rebecca as she walked over and gave Ashleigh a hug. "How are you feeling?"

"Much better now that the epidural is in," Ashleigh replied. "Right now I'm going through a bunch of mixed feelings as to whether I want the babies out now or not."

"Well sorry to tell you sis but there is no stopping them now," said Rebecca with a small laugh as she sat in a chair on the other side of Ashleigh's bed.

"I know," Ashleigh replied. "I guess I'm just starting to get nervous, that's all."

"And that's more than natural," said Rebecca. "Remember how nervous Casey was? I think it's just all a part of the process."

"You're probably right," Ashleigh sighed.

"Speaking of Casey," said Rebecca. "How is she doing?"

"Probably going crazy not being able to be here," Ashleigh replied. "I can only imagine how hard it must be for her to be on bed rest. I haven't talked to her in a while. Maybe I should call and let her know you are here."

"OK," said Rebecca as she watched Ashleigh grab her phone and dial Casey's number.

Ashleigh stared at Rebecca as the phone rang several times and eventually went to voicemail.

"That's weird," she said hanging up the phone. "Casey always answers her phone."

"Maybe she's in the bathroom or something," said Rebecca.

"I guess. Or she could be talking to Cappie," Ashleigh added.

"That's true. I didn't see him in the waiting area when I signed in at the front desk," said Rebecca.

"Evan's not with him?" Ashleigh asked.

"No, Evan couldn't come," said Rebecca. "He's really tied up with this big account at work but he said if I was still here over the weekend he would be able to come then to see the new babies."

"How are you two? Still good?" Ashleigh asked.

"Surprisingly yes," said Rebecca with a small laugh. "I'm actually thinking of getting on the baby train myself now."

"No way! A little Chambers?" Ashleigh exclaimed.

"Now not so fast," said Rebecca holding up her hand. "I just said I was thinking about it. Maybe seeing you go through this labor will change my mind."

"I think you and Evan would make very cute babies," said Ashleigh.

"I think we should concentrate on your babies and not my non-existent one right now," Rebecca replied with a small laugh.

Just then Beaver began to stir and looked at them with squinted eyes.

"Did I miss anything?" he asked in a groggy voice.

"No, you didn't miss anything," Ashleigh replied. "Rebecca is here though and the two of us have just been talking."

"Hi Rebecca," said Beaver as he sat up more in the chair. "Where's Evan?"

"He couldn't make it," Rebecca replied. "It's just me for right now."

"Glad you could make it," said Beaver as he turned to Ashleigh. "Do you need anything?"

"How about a shoulder massage?" asked Ashleigh as she leaned forward.

"That's my cue to let you two have some mommy and daddy time," said Rebecca as she stood up. "I'll check back in later."

"Bye Bex," she heard Ashleigh say as she shut the door to the room.

Rebecca walked back to the waiting area hoping to see someone she knew and was happy to see Cappie reading a magazine in the corner of the room.

"Eh hem," she cleared her throat as she stood in front of him.

"Hey Rebecca, when did you get here?" Cappie asked as he put the magazine down and stood to give her a hug.

"Not too long ago," Rebecca replied backing away from him. "I was in talking with Beaver and Ashleigh for a bit. He was going to give her a neck massage or something so I decided to let them have some alone time."

"Anything to keep them calm I guess," said Cappie. "I feel like I've been running around trying to keep Beaver from second guessing every decision he's ever made recently."

"You can't tell me you didn't expect that though," said Rebecca sitting next to Cappie. "Beaver has always been a spaz in stressful situations."

"This is true," Cappie replied. "I didn't expect it to be this bad though."

"Well soon it will all be over and those babies will be born," said Rebecca.

"Yeah, but after this I then have to go through it all over again with Casey," said Cappie. "Which is stressing me out even more."

"Why is that?" Rebecca asked.

Cappie paused.

"Nah, this is not the time to talk about my problems," Cappie finally said shrugging it off.

"Oh come on," said Rebecca folding her arms. "We have at least another several hours before the babies are going to be born. I've got plenty of time to listen."

Cappie took a deep breath and turned to look at Rebecca. She gave him this certain look she has when she's waiting for someone to tell her something. So he finally decided to give in.

"It just seems that I feel like I'm more concerned with the safety of her and the baby than she is," said Cappie.

"What do you mean by that?" Rebecca asked.

"It just seems like she's kind of taking this bed rest thing a little looser than she should," said Cappie.

"From what I heard that girl has hardly left the bed at all in the past couple of weeks," said Rebecca.

"Which is true," Cappie added. "But I think she's really just staying put for me. If she had her way she would probably be here helping Ashleigh out than being in bed like she's supposed to be."

"Well Ashleigh is her best friend," Rebecca replied. "It's only normal for her to want to be here."

"I understand that," said Cappie. "But if that was you, wouldn't you be more concerned about your own baby before wanting to come here and be with Ashleigh?"

"For me personally, yes, I would stay put at home like I'm supposed to," said Rebecca.

"Thank you," said Cappie thinking Rebecca was in agreement with him.

"But that is what I would do, not what Casey would do," Rebecca continued. "Casey has always looked out for others above herself throughout all the time I've known her, especially when it comes to Ashleigh. That's just the way Casey is. She's got a big heart that I think sometimes can get her into trouble if she doesn't know how to tell it 'no' sometimes."

"So basically my wife is a sap who cares about others before herself?" Cappie asked.

"That's not necessarily what I said," Rebecca replied. "Casey is a good person and you more than anyone should know that since you married her. I'm just saying that sometimes her loyalty to others, whether it is friends or family or Zeta Beta, is put before herself sometimes. Look at what happened when Evan cheated on her. She stayed with him because Frannie and the sorority told her it would be best. She probably would have dumped him if it was completely up to her."

"Yeah, I guess you're right," said Cappie with a small sigh.

"Cap, right now you don't have anything to worry about though," said Rebecca. "She is at home and in bed, not here. That should tell you that she is thinking more about herself and the baby than Ashleigh right now. It's probably killing her but you have to give her some credit for doing it."

"You know, you are so right," said Cappie with a smile now on his face. "Thanks Bex."

"Hey, after you helped me get over myself and marry Evan, I think I owe you a piece of advice or two," she said with a small laugh.

"Try like twenty after what you did," said Cappie also with a laugh.

"OK fine, I guess I'm down to nineteen now huh?" Rebecca asked.

"Sure," Cappie replied as he gave her a hug.

* * *

After a huge ordeal getting her down the stairs and a very bumpy ambulance ride Casey finally made it to the emergency room. Her lie to get to the emergency room was that she took her blood pressure and it was very high and she was starting to feel contractions. Maybe her lie was just a little over the top because she could just see the panic in the paramedics faces on the way to the hospital. They kept taking her blood pressure over and over again until they arrived at the hospital. While her blood pressure was a little high, it was nothing she was too concerned about since it had mostly been that way over the past couple of weeks.

Once she was brought in the staff quickly hooked her up to every monitor they could, put oxygen on her and put an urgent page to the doctor on call. The more things they were doing to her, the guiltier she started to feel about what she had done. But she thought that worse comes to worse they rule what she said as an isolated incident and either keep her for a day or so of observation or send her home. Well, in her case upstairs to Ashleigh's room since she was already here. She knew there was no way she was going to leave the hospital without at least seeing Ashleigh and the babies, if they are born at the time.

Casey laid on the uncomfortable gurney waiting for the doctor to come back in when there was a knock at her door and in walked a very familiar lady.

"Eleanor! What are you doing here so late?" said Casey glancing up at the clock which read almost ten o'clock.

"I thought it was you I saw on the patient list my dear," said Eleanor walking over to Casey. "Is everything OK with you and the baby?"

"Everything is fine," Casey replied. "I've been on bed rest since the last time I was here and started feeling some weird feelings so thought I would come in to get it checked out."

Casey knew she shouldn't lie to Eleanor but she really wasn't in the mood to explain the reasons why she was there. And quite frankly, she thought that Eleanor would disapprove of her actions and right now she needed the company, not someone angry at her.

"Well I certainly hope everything is OK with you," said Eleanor. "I was actually just finishing up my shift and I always take a look at the hospital roster before I leave just in case there is someone I know and I came right as soon as I saw your name."

"Thank you very much Eleanor, you have certainly brightened up my time here a little," said Casey.

"Where is that handsome husband of yours?" Eleanor asked. "I would be sure he would be here with you."

"He should be here later," Casey replied. "He had some things to finish up at work and I told him it was nothing to worry about."

And there was another lie. Casey was feeling guiltier by the second with all these lies she was telling. She was really beginning to rethink this decision to come to the emergency room.

"I will be glad to stay here with you until he comes," said Eleanor. "I know you must be scared being here alone."

"It is late though Eleanor," said Casey feeling even more guilty if Eleanor were to stay with her. "You should get home. I should probably just get some rest before the doctor comes back with the test results."

"Are you sure? Because I would be more than happy to stay with my favorite patient for a while," said Eleanor.

"I'm sure," Casey replied. "If I'm still here when you come back for your next shift you can certainly come and see me and we'll chat."

"I'm due back tomorrow morning," said Eleanor. "You'll be the first person I look up on the roster."

"I may or may not be here depending on what the doctor says but if I am, I'll be happy to see you," Casey replied.

"OK my dear, I'll let you get some sleep," said Eleanor as she kissed Casey's forehead. "Is there anything I can do for you before I leave?"

Casey thought for a second.

"Actually," she said with a little hesitation. "There is something you could do for me if you don't mind."

"What is that dear?" Eleanor asked.

"My best friend Ashleigh Thompson is actually upstairs in the labor and delivery wing," said Casey. "I left my phone at home and haven't been able to talk to her. She's having twins and I was just wondering if you could maybe go up and check on her and make sure everything is alright? The last time we talked she was really nervous and her husband wasn't really helping her calm down a lot. I think it might be good for her to talk to you for a few minutes as a woman and someone who has been through labor before. I thought that person was going to be me but as you can see, I'm kind of stuck down here at the moment. I hope this is not too much to ask."

"Oh darling, not at all," said Eleanor. "Talking to nervous moms-to-be is a big part of my job. I'm always up on the labor and delivery wing. I would be happy to check in on her for you."

"You are truly the best Eleanor," said Casey with a smile. "I'll be looking forward to seeing you tomorrow if I'm here."

"Get some rest darling," said Eleanor as she walked over to the door. "I'll see you later."

Eleanor smiled back at Casey as she quietly walked out of the room. She slowly made her way over to the elevator and took it up to the labor and delivery floor.

"Eleanor, what are you doing here so late?" the desk clerk asked her as she walked up to the desk.

"Just checking up on a patient before I head home," said Eleanor. "The name is Ashleigh Thompson."

"Oh yes, she is in room 3004," the clerk replied. "But she's got quite a few visitors in there right now. The doc said she's almost ready to deliver so they invited everyone in for one last visit before it's time."

"I won't be in long," said Eleanor putting her name tag back on. "I just want to make sure everything is OK with her."

Eleanor walked through the double doors and to room 3004. She quietly knocked on the door and waited until she was instructed to come in.

"I'm sorry to intrude," she said as she walked into the room. "I'm one of the hospital volunteers and I wanted to check and see how the mommy-to-be is doing."

"Nervous as usual," Ashleigh replied.

"And how about daddy-to-be?" Eleanor asked looking at the man holding Ashleigh's hand, assuming he was the father.

"Nervous too," Beaver replied. "The doctor said that it is almost time and my heart is really beginning to race."

"That is perfectly normal dear," said Eleanor as she walked over to the other side of the bed and placed her hand on Beaver's shoulder. "But you look like a strong man physically so I'm sure you're strong enough mentally also."

"Thanks," said Beaver with a smile.

"And it looks like you two both have a good support system here," said Eleanor as she looked around the room.

"Yes, those are our parents," said Ashleigh pointing to the four people in chairs in the front of her bed. "And my brother, two sisters and one of my best friends Rebecca," she continued as she pointed to the others.

"Having a child is such a wonderful experience to share with many friends and family," said Eleanor. "I'm glad you all could be here for Ashleigh."

"I'm sorry, I didn't catch your name," Ashleigh asked Eleanor.

"I'm Eleanor," she replied. "Sorry for not introducing myself."

"Wait, are you the same Eleanor who knows my friend Casey Cappington?" Ashleigh asked.

"Why yes I am," Eleanor replied.

"Casey has told me so much about you," Ashleigh replied. "It's great to finally meet you and thank you so much for stopping in. I really appreciate it."

"I always try to stop in to see the mothers-to-be," said Eleanor. "I know it's a pretty scary thing and I just want to let you know that I'm here to help if you need anything."

"Thanks, that—"

But Ashleigh's statement was cut off by Cappie rushing into the room.

"Sorry I'm late," he said. "I was in the bathroom and when I went out to see the waiting room empty the clerk told me that everyone was in here because it was about time and—"

Cappie stopped mid-sentence when he looked up and saw Eleanor standing next to Ashleigh's bed.

"Hey, I know you," said Cappie looking at her with a smile.

"Honey, shouldn't you be downstairs with your wife?" Eleanor asked.

"What do you mean downstairs?" Cappie asked as the smile fell off his face.

"Downstairs in the emergency room. She's there," Eleanor replied.

And with that all the color seemed to fade from Cappie's face. He didn't know what else to do but turn around and run out of the room as fast as he could.

* * *

_**A/N: Hey everyone! I got a writing spark today and wanted to post for everyone wanting to know what happens next. Sorry to leave you with quite the cliffhanger but I'm hoping to keep writing over the next few days and get the next chapter up sooner than later. I'm hoping to start doing some shorter chapters with more frequent updates so we'll just have to see how that goes. Please drop a review and let me know what you think :0) **_


	142. Lessons Learned

LESSONS LEARNED

Soon after Cappie left the room everyone slowly made their way out wishing Ashleigh and Beaver luck with the delivery.

"The doctor will be here in a few minutes to check you Ashleigh," said a nursing peeking her head in the room and quickly leaving.

"Gosh I hope everything is OK with Casey," said Ashleigh as she clenched her teeth through yet another contraction.

"I'm sure everything is just fine," Beaver replied. "And I'm sure Cappie will let us know as soon as he knows something. But right now you can't be concentrating on Casey, you need to concentrate on the babies."

"I know, I know," said Ashleigh as she grabbed Beaver's hand and began to squeeze hard as she was experiencing another contraction. "I'm just anxious for the doctor to get here. I feel like I have to push but I don't want to do anything until she tells me it's OK."

"Yeah, don't push," said Beaver thinking about the consequences. "I don't need to catch my son or daughter flying out of you without any doctor here."

"Oh lord, if only they came out that easily," said Ashleigh with a small laugh.

But Beaver didn't laugh along with her.

"Come on honey, it was a joke," said Ashleigh. "You need to calm down and relax a little bit. Everything is going to be just fine. Who knows, I may not even be dilated all the way at this point. We won't know anything until the doctor is here."

And just like on cue Dr. Snyder knocked on the door and walked in.

"Hello!" she said in a cheerful voice. "Looks like these babies are ready to be late night babies huh?"

"I guess so," said Ashleigh as she watched Dr. Snyder put her gloves on to check and see how much she was dilated.

The process took just a couple of seconds as usual and the smile on Dr. Snyder's face told everything.

"Ten centimeters," she said. "My, you went rather quickly once the epidural was put in didn't you?"

"I guess the babies realized they weren't putting me in any pain anymore and just decided it was time to come out instead huh?" said Ashleigh.

"Good point," said Dr. Snyder with a laugh. "OK, I'm going to have the birthing nurse come in and go through the pre-labor process with you which is getting the first baby through the canal. They will page me once we are ready to deliver."

"Wait, you're not staying?" said Beaver somewhat frantically. "Don't you think you should stay at this point in time? I'll pay you some more if that is what needs to happen."

Dr. Snyder watched as Beaver took his wallet out of his back pants pocket.

"Mr. Thompson, put your money away," said Dr. Snyder as she put her hand on Beaver's forearm. "This is the process every delivery goes through. There are actually two other women who are about to give birth so I have to be available to them also in case their doctors are not."

"Well what if you're delivering one of their babies when it's time for you to come in to deliver one of ours?" asked Beaver. "I don't know if we could handle another doctor."

"Calm down dad," said Dr. Snyder. "I will be here all night and you have my word that I will be here to deliver your children. I promise."

"Well, OK," Beaver hesitated. "As long as you promise."

"Beave, can you just let the doctor do her job?" Ashleigh asked. "I think by now she knows what she is doing."

Beaver nodded his head as Dr. Snyder let go of his arm.

"I will see you guys soon," she said as she left the room.

"OK, this is it," said Beaver as he began to pace in the room. "Do we have everything? Are we ready for this?"

"What do you mean?" Ashleigh asked.

"Well, the babies need those carrier things they put them in when they are born and they need little hats and blankets and, oh my gosh, none of this stuff is here!" Beaver began to panic.

"Beave, these people know what they are doing," said Ashleigh. "I'm sure they will have everything we need. Right now you just need to be over here by my side and help me through this."

"Oh yes, I'm sorry," said Beaver rushing over to Ashleigh's side and taking her hand.

Beaver took Ashleigh through a few deep breaths until several nurses came into the room, two of them pushing the baby carriers with blankets and hats Beaver was so worried about. He let out a sigh of relief when he saw them.

"Alright, time to get started Ashleigh," said one of the nurses as she put a gown and gloves on.

"Wait, one second," said Beaver as he let go of Ashleigh's hand and went over to the bag he had packed. He pulled out a video camera and turned it on.

"Seriously Beave? Do we really need this on camera?" Ashleigh asked. "How are you going to be able to help me and tape at the same time?"

"I don't know, I didn't think about that," said Beaver. "Should I go and get Rebecca or someone to tape this?"

"No, this is something I just want between you and me," said Ashleigh. "You can video tape them after they are born. You don't need to tape them coming out of me."

"But it'll be so cool to watch later," Beaver whined.

Ashleigh rolled her eyes and glared at him.

"OK, I'll put it down for now," said Beaver as he set the camera on the table next to Ashleigh's bed, hoping he could pick it up in the future and start recording.

One of the other nurses took Ashleigh's right leg as Beaver took the left.

"Ashleigh, what I want you to do is the next time you feel a contraction you need to bear down and push for as hard and as long as you can," said the nurse.

"OK," Ashleigh said nodding her head.

It was only a few seconds later when a contraction came on and she took a deep breath and pushed with all her might.

"One, two, three, four," Beaver began to count until he got to ten and then Ashleigh relaxed.

"That was a great push Ashleigh," said the nurse. "If you keep going with those we'll be ready to deliver these babies sooner than later."

Ashleigh pushed through several more contractions and she was finding it harder and harder to find the energy to do so.

"You are doing great babe," said Beaver next to her as he wiped the sweat off of her face. "The nurse says you are doing a great job."

"I don't feel like I'm getting anywhere," said Ashleigh as she then began to lightly shake.

"What is going on?" said Beaver as he began to get worried.

"Everything is just fine," the nurse assured him. "Some women begin to shake a little during labor because of all the hormones that are getting released. No need to worry."

Ashleigh felt another contraction come on and pushed with everything she had. After that contraction the nurse felt to see how far down the first baby was.

"You are getting so close Ashleigh," she said. "Just a few more pushes and I should be able to get Dr. Snyder in here to start delivery."

"Oh man, it's really starting to hurt," said Ashleigh as she rubbed her stomach. "I feel like one of them is pushing on my pelvic bone."

"That's probably the second baby," said the nurse. "If you need to you can massage a little where it is hurting to try and get him and or her to move a little to help with the pressure."

"Oh, here's another contraction," said Ashleigh before she was able to even try to move the baby to help with the pain. She pushed through it again, gasping for air as she relaxed.

One of the other nurses came over and put some oxygen on Ashleigh.

"What is that for? Is something wrong?" asked the always worried Beaver.

"Since she's holding her breath to push we just like to put it on her to make sure the babies are getting the proper amount of oxygen," the nurse replied. "Nothing to worry about."

Ashleigh pushed through another couple of contractions when the nurse finally let her relax while she called the doctor. While she was on the phone Beaver peeked to see if he could see anything yet and saw what looked like some dark hair of the baby's head.

"Oh man, I think I'm getting a little woozy," said Beaver as he looked away.

Ashleigh turned to Beaver to see how flushed he had gotten all of a sudden.

"Here, why don't you sit down in a chair for a bit," said the nurse who brought a chair behind Beaver so he could sit in it.

"Beave, you have to stay strong," said Ashleigh as Beaver sat back in the chair. "I can't do this alone."

"Everything is fine," said Beaver as he took a sip of Ashleigh's water on her bedside table. "I'm starting to feel better."

"You see, I told you I would be here," said Dr. Snyder as she walked in the room and began to put her delivery gown, gloves and mask on.

"I always had faith in you," said Beaver with a wink.

"Whoa Ashleigh, you are doing a great job," said Dr. Snyder as she looked to see how close the baby was to coming out.

"I really, really need to push," said Ashleigh who was growing more and more uncomfortable.

"Next contraction Ashleigh, it's all yours," said Dr. Snyder as she got into position.

Beaver stood back up and grabbed Ashleigh's leg again.

"You can do this babe," he said. "Baby number one is almost here. Make me proud."

The next contraction finally came and Ashleigh began to push as hard as she could. Beaver watched intently as the head moved further out. But at the same time he could feel his own legs getting weaker and weaker. He tried so hard to stay strong and stay up for Ashleigh. But at one point his body couldn't fight anymore. He felt his face become flush and the knees slowly begin to give out.

"Uh oh, we're losing dad here," said Dr. Snyder as she looked over at Beaver.

In one swift move the nurse moved the chair closer as Beaver collapsed into it.

"Beaver!" screamed Ashleigh. At this point she didn't know what to do, concentrate on the babies…or her husband who had just passed out.

* * *

Cappie skipped the elevator and ran down the three flights of stairs as fast as he could. How could Casey not tell him she was there? Did something really bad happen that she couldn't call him or something? But then his mom would have been able to call him right? Maybe his cell phone didn't have any reception at the time either of them tried to call?

The questions were still continuing to spin in his head when he finally reached the front desk of the emergency room.

"Can I help you?" asked the nurse at the desk.

"I'm looking for my wife," Cappie said between breaths. "She's here in the emergency room."

"And her name?" the nurse asked in an impatient tone of voice.

"Sorry," said Cappie realizing he didn't say her name. "Casey Cappington."

The nurse typed in Casey's name on the computer and looked to her left.

"She's supposed to be in room 10 over there," she pointed to the empty room. "But I think they may have taken her away to do some tests."

"Well where is she? Can I go to her?" Cappie asked in a more frantic tone.

"I'm sorry, no family allowed back in the testing area," said the nurse. "You're welcome to wait in the room or the waiting area until they bring her back."

"Can you at least tell me if she's alright?" Cappie asked. "I have no idea what is going on."

"I'm sorry, I can't give out any patient information," the nurse replied.

"Please?" Cappie asked this time in a very sad tone. He really just wanted to know what was going on right now.

The nurse took a deep breath and looked at the computer again.

"All I am going to tell you is that it's nothing too critical," she replied. "She's not listed as a trauma patient."

"Well I could have told you that," said Cappie throwing his hands in the air. "She's pregnant and supposed to be on bed rest because of blood pressure problems so that is obviously the reason she is here. Can you give me anything else? Is the baby OK?"

"I'm sorry sir, I can't," said the nurse. "I really wish I could but all I can tell you now is to have a seat and myself or one of the other nurses will come and get you as soon as she returns from testing."

Cappie let out a deep breath, he was defeated.

"I'll be sitting right over there," he said pointing to a chair in the waiting area. "As soon as you hear anything you let me know."

"You have my word," she replied as she walked away to tend to another family member waiting.

Cappie slowly walked to the chair he had pointed to and sat down. He first looked around at the off-chance his mom and Cadence were also in the room but he didn't see them. He then pulled out his phone to check if he had any messages but there were none. Instead he called the house, hoping that his mom would pick up the phone. He hated calling this late at night to risk waking Cadence up but he really didn't have a choice at the moment. After about four rings she finally picked up.

"Mom, what in the hell is going on with Casey?" Cappie asked.

"Is she alright?" his mom asked.

"You tell me," said Cappie. "You should know why she's here at the hospital."

"She didn't tell you?" Mrs. Cappington asked.

"No, I haven't even seen her yet mom," said Cappie. "One of the volunteers told me she was here and by the time I got to her she was away for some testing."

"Cap, calm down, everything is fine," said his mom in a calm voice.

"No, everything is not fine when Casey is here in the emergency room," said Cappie. "Is the baby OK?"

"I'm sure the baby is fine," said Mrs. Cappington. "You should just talk to Casey about what is going on. She'll tell you."

"But why can't you tell me?" Cappie asked.

"Everything will be just fine," was all she replied again. "Goodnight sweetheart, don't stay up too late."

And with that she hung up the phone and now Cappie was even more worried than he was before. Why wouldn't his mom just say what was going on? She acted so calm about everything. And then an awful thought came into Cappie's head; what if his mom was so calm because she was happy that something was happening to the baby? He knew his parents didn't feel the two of them were ready to have another kid. Maybe that was why. But he knew that thought was ludicrous. His mom, no matter how upset she is at something, is still the kind hearted hippie he's known his whole life. There is no way she would act so calm if there was something truly wrong with the baby.

For the next twenty minutes Cappie's head continued to spin with all kinds of unanswered questions. What if something happened once Casey got to the hospital and it wasn't such a big deal at home? What if she's delivering the baby right now? What if her blood pressure is too high and they can't get it down? What if, what if, what if….the questions were beginning to give him a headache. He kept his eyes glued to the area behind the front desk hoping to see when the orderlies were bringing her back to the room. It was the longest wait of his entire life.

Finally, just when he thought he couldn't take it anymore the nurse walked back up to him. He stood up right away, causing the chair he was sitting on to go skidding across the floor. He looked back towards room 10, Casey wasn't there.

"They went ahead and admitted your wife after she was done with the testing," said the nurse. "She's in room 3010."

"Thanks," was all Cappie said as he rushed back towards the stairs.

He wasn't really sure if he's ever ran up three flights of steps before but if he had, this time was surely the fastest he had ever done it. He had to take a slight break at the top to catch his breath but eventually ran towards the labor and delivery wing.

"Sir, you can't go in there without authorization," said the nurse at the front desk as Cappie whisked by her and ran into the locked doors.

"Here," he said hold up his arm showing the bracelet he had to go in and out of the wing to see Ashleigh and Beaver.

"I'm sorry, she's in labor at the moment. I can't let you in there," said the nurse.

"Alright, you listen here," said Cappie walking back towards the desk, becoming angrier by the second. "My wife is back there in room 3010 and if I don't get back there in like two seconds I'm just going to lose it."

"It's alright sir, I can help you with that," said the nurse in a calm and robotic manner, like she had practiced dealing with crazed family members before. "What is your wife's name?"

"Oh my god," said Cappie rolling his eyes and pulling out his wallet. "Her name is Casey Cappington. Here is my driver's license to prove who I am, here's my social security card if you need that too, hell, here's a credit card with an unlimited balance because maybe some money will make you go faster. Just let me back there damnit!"

"Now sir, there is no reason to be hostile," said the nurse as she looked at his ID and gave him back his social security card and credit card.

Cappie waited, tapping his foot up and down on the floor as hard as he could to show how impatient he was as the nurse printed off a bracelet for him.

"Here you go," she said putting it around his wrist.

Cappie bit his tongue so he didn't say anything mean to the lady as she unlocked the doors and let him in. He rushed down the hall and into room 3010. The room for the most part was dark except for the lamp near the bed, which was on. It was shining right on Casey's face and he could see she was resting. He stood and listened to the heartbeat of the baby for a second, making sure it was OK, before entering the room. He walked over to the side of the bed and gently brushed Casey's cheek, not wanting to startle her too much.

"Hey," she said in a low voice as she opened her eyes.

"I've been freaking out here Casey," said Cappie not wasting any time. "What in the hell is going on?"

"Everything is fine," said Casey as she looked into his eyes.

"You and mom both say that but it doesn't make any sense Case," said Cappie as he sat in the chair next to her bed. "You wouldn't be here in the hospital if there was nothing wrong."

"I think the doctors are way overreacting," said Casey as she sat up a little bit more in the bed. "Oh, how's Ashleigh?"

"No, we're not talking about Ashleigh at the moment," said Cappie. "We're talking about you and the baby right now."

"The doctors said the baby is just fine," said Casey. "My blood pressure is still elevated a little bit but nothing more than what it has been while I was at home."

Cappie just shot her a confused look.

"So if nothing is wrong, then why are you here?" Cappie asked.

"I made a horrible mistake," said Casey breaking her gaze away from Cappie and looking down at the bed sheets.

"And what would this mistake be?" Cappie asked, slowly becoming less worried and more frustrated.

There was a long pause. Casey lifted her head up and down a couple of times to look at Cappie but she couldn't hold her gaze at him for long. She could already feel the tears coming on knowing how hurt Cappie is liable to be.

"I lied to get here," Casey finally admitted.

"You what?" Cappie asked, unsure of what exactly Casey was trying to tell him.

"I was at home and talking with your mom and telling her how much I wanted to be here for Ashleigh and I guess one thing led to another and I got here," she replied.

She looked up again and could instantly see the anger come over Cappie's face. She turned away quickly, not wanting to see any further changes in his expression.

"Are you telling me you called the paramedics and lied to get here so you could be here when Ashleigh delivers the babies?" Cappie asked, a level of disgust now in his voice.

Casey just nodded her head yes, not wanting to speak.

"Are you kidding me?" Cappie raised his voice as he stood up out of the chair and began to pace in the front of her bed. "You put Ashleigh before yourself and your child? Do you even realize what you could have done by coming here tonight?"

"I do now," said Casey, the tears now streaming down her cheeks. "Please Cap, don't be upset with me."

"Don't be upset with you!" Cappie mocked her. "How do you expect me to not be upset with what you did? I can't believe you would even do something like this!"

"It was a spur of the moment decision Cap," said Casey through her tears. "I didn't even give myself time to think about the consequences. All I could think about is how much I wanted to be here with my best friend in one of the most difficult times in her life."

"And did you even once think about your own family Casey?" said Cappie as he stopped pacing and walked closer to her bed. "Did you for one second think about how I would feel about you doing this? Better yet, did you even think about how this could affect you or the baby? What if the ambulance crashed on your way here? What if the stress of moving too much made you go into labor? Did you think about any of those things?"

"No, I didn't," was all Casey replied, her voice now shakier and harder to understand.

"I just—"

Cappie was interrupted by the nurse coming into the room.

"I'm sorry for interrupting," he said. "I'm Casey's nurse Mark."

"Hi, I'm Cappie, Casey's husband," said Cappie shaking the nurse's hand.

"I just wanted to see if you wanted me to have one of the orderlies bring up a roll-away bed for you?" Mark asked.

"No, I think I'm OK sleeping in the recliner chair for the night," Cappie replied. "Thanks though."

"Well I know from experience those chairs can get pretty uncomfortable after a few nights," said Mark. "My wife was here for a week and a half waiting to deliver. You let one of us know if you ever want that roll-away bed."

"Uh, will do," Cappie replied as he watched the nurse walk out of the room.

"Case, what is he talking about?" Cappie asked turning to look at her.

Casey looked up at him this time as she wiped the tears off her face.

"The doctors won't let me go home," Casey replied as she sniffled. "I have to stay here until the baby is delivered."

"Wait, a month?" Cappie exclaimed. "You have to be here for the next month?"

Casey just nodded her head yes again.

Cappie's level of anger was now going through the roof. How was he now supposed to watch Cadence, maintain the home and keep up with the restaurants, all while visiting Casey in the hospital? He needed to get out of there and get some air to cool off.

"I need to get out of here," he said walking towards the door.

"Cap, please, don't go," Casey pleaded.

Cappie turned around and looked at Casey once he was in the doorway. As much as he was relieved that nothing was wrong with Casey or the baby, he was angrier with Casey's actions. She never would be here if she didn't come up with this silly plan to come and see Ashleigh. She could still be at home waiting out the rest of her pregnancy. He saw more tears streaming down her face but at the moment they had no affect on him. He had never been more disappointed with Casey in his life than he was right now.

"I hope you learned your lesson," he said in a bitter tone. "Enjoy the next month in here."

And with that he left, slamming the door behind him.

* * *

_**A/N: Wow, I think this is the soonest I've posted one chapter after another in a while LoL! Turned out to be longer than I expected but I'm sure you don't mind. Hope you guys liked it!**_


	143. More Than a Feeling

MORE THAN A FEELING

Cappie finally reached the main entrance to the hospital and went outside. As the automatic doors closed behind him he took a deep breath of the cold air surrounding his nose. There were a couple of inches of snow on the ground but the coldness didn't affect him. If anything, it made him feel better. His anger in the hospital caused him to feel hot and smothered. But outside he felt freer, like he could breathe again.

He knew what he said to Casey was pretty hurtful but it was like she had no idea how hurt he actually was. There is nothing more important in the entire world to him than his wife and children. As much as he hated to say it, if Cadence and Beaver were both drowning in the ocean he would save Cadence first. That's just how it always was for him, family first and friends second. And it drove him crazy thinking that Casey acted just the opposite.

He began to walk down the sidewalk as fine snowflakes began to fall around him. He reached the courtyard and saw many footprints throughout the snow. There must have been some children playing there earlier in the day. As he was about to turn around and head back to the hospital entrance something caught his eye. In the snow next to him were impressions of snow angels, some big, some small. He bent down and lightly touched the snow with fond memories of Casey and him rushing back to his head. The first time he ever saw snow he told her he loved her. His love for her hadn't changed; there was no doubt about that. He just didn't know what to say to her at the moment. He took a ball of snow in his hands and as he stood up he threw it against the sidewalk as hard as he could, causing it to scatter in numerous little pieces. Throwing the snow made him feel good, but only for a moment. He looked down at the scattered pieces of snow and couldn't help but think that was how he felt at the moment. He was shattered in several pieces and usually Casey was the one who would pick up those pieces and help him put them back together again. But when she was the cause of his shattered pieces this time, he was left to pick them all back up by himself, and he questioned whether he had the strength to do that or not.

He slowly made his way back to the front entrance, still questioning what he was going to do in the situation. All he knew at the moment was that he wasn't ready to go back inside. He found a bench near the entrance, conveniently placed under the overhang to protect whoever sat there from the snow. He sat down and shoved his hands in the pockets of his coat as he leaned back and shut his eyes. The position was comfortable and he felt calm, only hearing the occasional shutting and closing of the automatic door. He sat there for several minutes thinking about Casey and the current situation the two of them were in. Eventually he switched positions, taking his hands out of his pockets and burying his head in them as he leaned forward. He had the beginnings of a headache and he was doing everything he could to will it away.

"Cappie?" he heard a voice say next to him.

He looked up to see Calvin and Health standing there staring at him.

"Hey guys," Cappie sighed as he sat back on the bench again.

"You don't look so good," said Calvin in a worried tone. "Is Ashleigh OK? Is there something wrong with the babies?"

"Babies?" Cappie asked, wondering for a second what Calvin was talking about but quickly remembered that Ashleigh was in labor at the moment. "Oh, babies. I haven't really heard anything so I assume everything is going OK. What are you guys doing here so late?"

"Heath and I were staying at a hotel in town because Ashleigh didn't think the babies were going to be born until tomorrow," said Calvin. "But I got a call from Rebecca a little bit ago that she was starting to push so we came down to support her and Beaver."

"That's nice of you guys," said Cappie. "She's in room 3004. I'm sure if you head up there you'll see Rebecca and everyone else in the waiting room and can join them."

Calvin and Heath were about to turn and walk into the hospital when they noticed that Cappie wasn't moving.

"Is everything alright with you Cap?" Heath asked as he and Calvin sat next to Cappie on the bench. "You do realize you are sitting out here and it's only twenty degrees out."

"Yeah, I'm aware of that," Cappie replied. "I'm just dealing with some things right now and have been thinking."

"Care to elaborate?" Calvin asked.

Cappie took a deep breath and again buried his head in his hands.

"Casey's in room 3010," he mumbled.

"I'm sorry, what did you say?" Heath asked. "For a second there I thought you said that Casey was also in the hospital. Last time I talked to Beaver she was on bed rest."

"You heard me right," said Cappie turning to look at Heath. "She just got admitted a little while ago."

"Oh god Cap," said Calvin with a gulp. "Please tell me that Casey and the baby are alright."

There was a brief pause, Calvin and Heath both staring at Cappie intently for an answer.

"Yeah, everything is OK for now," Cappie replied.

"So why the long face?" Heath asked. "Why sit out here in the twenty degree weather pouting like you just lost your best friend?"

"Because I feel like my best friend and I aren't on the same page at the moment," said Cappie now leaning back against the bench and tucking his cold hands back in his coat pockets.

"What does Beaver have to do with this?" Heath asked.

Calvin playfully hit Heath on the side of the arm. "He's talking about Casey, not Beaver," he said as he turned his attention back to Cappie.

"Casey decided being here with Ashleigh during her labor was more important than staying on bed rest back at home," Cappie continued. "So she got the paramedics to take her here on false pretenses but things didn't go the way she planned."

"How so?" Heath asked.

"The doctors told her she now has to stay in the hospital until the baby is born," Cappie replied. "They aren't letting her go home. So she'll be here for about another month."

"Wow, that's a long time to spend in the hospital," said Calvin. "I feel bad for her."

"In a way I do too," said Cappie. "But at the same time I can't help but think that she brought this all on herself. If she would have just stayed at home and worried about herself and not Ashleigh, she wouldn't be in this situation."

"Sounds like you're pretty bitter about the situation," stated Calvin.

"How could you not be?" Cappie asked raising his voice a little bit. "How would you feel if Heath did something like this?"

"Well, I'm not getting pregnant anytime soon if that is what you're asking," said Heath with a small laugh.

"You know what I meant," said Cappie giving Heath a playful glare. "In any situation, what would you do if Heath chose a friend over you?"

"Personally I would probably question Heath in a situation like this because that would be a little out of his character," Calvin replied. "But honestly Cap, I don't see this being much out of Casey's character at all."

"What do you mean?" Cappie asked.

"Casey has one of the biggest hearts I know," Calvin replied. "She's always had a special place in her heart for her friends and sorority sisters, especially Ashleigh. The two of them have been inseparable for years. I'm not saying what she did was right, I'm just saying I can see why she did it."

"So I'm just supposed to forgive her because she has a big heart?" Cappie asked quizzically.

"No, you're going to forgive her because you have that same big heart," Calvin replied. "Look at everything you and Casey have been through. You two have years of ups and downs in your relationship. I know you don't have it in your heart to give up on her now, especially when she probably needs you the most."

"And you have to think about this from a medical view too," said Heath interjecting from the point of view of a doctor himself. "If you and Casey are having a strain on your relationship that is going to put a lot of stress on her body causing her blood pressure to rise and possibly affecting the baby. Added stress can lead to pre-term labor and a multitude of other health problems that I don't think you want to have to deal with."

Cappie sat silent and thinking for a moment.

"You know, you're both right," he said. "Casey means more than anything in the world to me and I can't let her go through this alone," he said turning to Calvin. "And I would hate to put any other added stress on what she is already feeling and affect her and the baby," he said turning to Heath.

"So I think you know what you have to do," said Heath putting his hand on Cappie's shoulder.

"Yeah, I need to go and talk to my wife," said Cappie with a small smile. "Thanks guys, you've really helped me pick up the pieces right now."

Calvin and Health both gave Cappie confused looks.

"Never mind," he said smiling to himself. "Just something I was thinking about before you guys got here."

"Well, I'm just glad we could help," said Calvin standing up. "But honestly my hands are about to fall off from frostbite so can we go inside where it's warmer now?"

"Sure," said Cappie and he and Heath also stood up and followed Calvin inside.

* * *

"Whoa, what's going on?" asked Beaver softly as he opened his eyes.

"You passed out," said Dr. Snyder.

Beaver sat up and looked at Ashleigh who was taking short deep breaths through another contraction.

"I'm so sorry," he said taking her hand. "I guess I should have mentioned that seeing blood and guts makes me a little queasy."

"Yeah, that probably would have been a good thing to mention," said Ashleigh through her gritted teeth.

"Come on Ashleigh, let's focus here," said Dr. Snyder. "Dad, I think as long as you stay sitting in the chair and focus on your wife you should be fine."

"You're doing great honey," said Beaver as he kissed her hand. "You've got this."

Ashleigh felt another contraction come on and pushed with everything she had.

"Alright, the head for baby number one is coming out!" exclaimed Dr. Snyder as she grabbed it with her hands.

Beaver wanted so badly to look down and watch but he was afraid of passing out again so he just stared at Ashleigh's face.

"Just a couple more pushes baby," he said stroking a piece of hair out of her face. "And we'll have our first baby here."

Ashleigh nodded as she bore down as hard as she could, letting out a loud moan in the process, partly due to overall fatigue and partly due to the pain she was feeling.

"One more good push Ashleigh, you're almost there," said Dr. Snyder.

Beaver smiled at Ashleigh as he watched her give it her all to push the baby out.

"And here we are!" exclaimed Dr. Snyder as she took baby number one and placed it on Ashleigh's stomach. "It's a boy!"

Beaver didn't care about the nauseous feeling he was having anymore. He looked down at his child laying on Ashleigh's stomach and tears streamed down his face.

"He's beautiful," said Ashleigh as she began to cry also.

"Would you like to cut the cord dad?" Dr. Snyder asked.

Beaver took the scissors from the nurse next to him and cut gently where the doctor told him to. He had dreamed of this moment for months and he couldn't believe it was finally here. It was almost instantly that the baby began to cry. It was a short baby cry, scared from the trauma he just went through.

"Alright Ashleigh, we've got another one to deliver now," said Dr. Snyder.

Ashleigh touched the baby on her stomach one last time before the nurse scooped him up and took him to get checked out on the other side of the room.

"Oh man," said Ashleigh gasping for air. "I don't know if I can do this again."

"Sure you can honey," said Beaver squeezing her hand. "I know you have the strength in you."

Ashleigh listened as her baby boy continued to wail on the other side of the room. She wanted nothing more than to hold him in her arms to try and calm him down. But she couldn't think about that at the moment. She needed to deliver her little girl now.

"Whenever you're ready Ashleigh," said Dr. Snyder. "Give me a couple of good pushes."

Ashleigh grabbed both of her thighs the nurses were now holding and pushed for another count of ten. She began to shake again causing Beaver to stand up and attend to her.

"You should sit down," said Ashleigh quietly.

"I'm fine," said Beaver swallowing a bout of nausea that hit him. "This is about you right now."

Beaver grabbed the washcloth and repositioned it on Ashleigh's head. The cold cloth felt so good on her forehead. She felt a slight burst of energy and decided to act upon it, pushing for another count of ten.

"You're doing great Ashleigh," said Dr. Snyder. "The head is almost out."

"Oh, I can't, I can't," whined Ashleigh who was completely exhausted at this point. "I don't have the energy."

Beaver leaned down towards Ashleigh's head and kissed her softly on the cheek.

"You've got this honey," he whispered in her ear. "Do it for Maddy."

Ashleigh looked Beaver right in the eye and took a deep breath. She nodded her head. "I can do this for Maddy," she said.

Dr. Snyder wasn't quite sure what was going on between the couple but whatever was said between the two of them seemed to give Ashleigh the spark she needed as she pushed for another two counts of ten.

"I think we're here Ashleigh," said Dr. Snyder. "One more push and baby number two will be here."

Ashleigh pushed one more time and instantly felt a surge of relief on her body when her count hit five and the baby popped out.

"It's a girl!" exclaimed Dr. Snyder as she placed the baby on Ashleigh's stomach just like she did with the other baby.

Ashleigh instantly noticed the baby was a little smaller than her brother, something Dr. Snyder explained may happen to twins at her last appointment. She watched Beaver cut the cord out of the corner of her eye but didn't want to take her eyes off her little girl. The baby had yet to cry but she was moving all her arms and legs so Ashleigh knew everything was still alright.

"Time to get her cleaned up," said the nurse as she lifted her up off of Ashleigh's stomach and took her to the other side of the room.

A few moments later Ashleigh and Beaver heard their little girl cry, almost in unison with her brother who laid in the cradle next to her.

"They are both beautiful," said Beaver as he leaned down and gave Ashleigh another kiss on the cheek. "You did an amazing job. I'm so proud of you."

"Thanks," said Ashleigh smiling up at him.

Beaver then picked up the video camera and walked over to the other side of the room, pushing record as he walked.

"Hey you guys," he said softly as he panned the camera back and forth between the two of them. "It's your birthday today. Happy birthday."

He smiled as he looked at both of his kids. The nurses had put their little hats on them and wrapped each up in a blanket to keep warm.

"Would you like to hold them before we take them up to the nursery?" the nurse asked.

"Why can't they stay here?" Beaver asked.

"Well they are premature, which is pretty normal for twins," the nurse explained. "But as a precaution we like to take them up there as soon as possible to hook them up to some monitors and make sure everything is alright."

"Oh, OK," said Beaver as he tried not to get too worried.

"Have a seat in the chair and I'll hand them to you," said the nurse as she watched Beaver put the video camera down and sat in the chair.

As the nurse picked up his baby boy he glanced over at Ashleigh who had a sorrowful look in her eyes. He knew holding them was something he wanted to experience with her for the first time but Ashleigh wasn't ready yet as she had still had afterbirth to deal with.

"Actually," he said standing up. "I'll wait until my wife can join me if that's OK."

"That's fine," the nurse replied as she put the baby back in the cradle. "Why don't you help me wheel them over to her so she can see them before we take them over to the nursery?"

"OK," Beaver replied.

"Is everything alright?" Ashleigh asked as they pushed the babies towards her bed.

"Yeah, everything is fine," said Beaver. "They just want to take them to the nursery to get checked out that's all."

"OK, well, bye babies," said Ashleigh blowing each of them a kiss. "I'll see you in a little bit."

With that Beaver returned to Ashleigh's side as they both watched the nurses take the babies to the nursery. He could instantly hear Ashleigh begin to cry.

"Hey, no crying unless those are happy tears," he said as he wrapped his arms around her. "Everything is going to be just fine. I promise."

* * *

_**A/N: Yay for the babies finally being born right? And yay for getting another chapter up quickly huh? LoL! I have to admit I was kind of bummed I didn't get as many reviews as I usually do with the last chapter...I hope you guys weren't upset with Cappie's reaction. :0( And if you were, hopefully his conversation with Heath and Calvin this chapter made it a little bit better. See Hans, told you Calvin would show up here soon :0) Anyway, let me know what you guys think. Any baby name guesses with the little mention I put in the chapter? You'll find out next chapter for sure :0) Have a good week everybody...new episode tomorrow! Woo hoo! Looks like a good one for all us Cappie and Casey fans from the preview :0)**_


	144. Live for Me

LIVE FOR ME

Excitement in the waiting room was noticeable when Cappie, Heath and Calvin arrived on the third floor.

"Well, must be good news," said Calvin as they entered the waiting room.

"The babies are here!" Rebecca yelled as she ran up to them. "We saw them wheeling them to the nursery through the door a little bit ago!"

"That's great news!" said Calvin as he gave her a hug.

"Hey, what are you doing out here?" Rebecca asked looking at Cappie as she backed away from Calvin. "I thought you were in Casey's room."

"I was," Cappie replied. "But I had to get outside and cool off for a bit."

"Uh oh," said Rebecca pulling him to the side as Calvin and Heath joined the rest of the group waiting to see the babies. "What happened?"

"Exactly what I was worried about when we talked earlier," said Cappie. "She's here at the hospital because of Ashleigh, not necessarily because there is something wrong with her or the baby."

"Well that's great news that nothing is wrong with them though," said Rebecca. "You have to at least be relieved of that."

"I am," Cappie replied. "But you have to understand why I'm hurt."

"I do," Rebecca replied clasping her hands in front of her. "So, are you going to talk to her?"

"Eventually," Cappie replied avoiding Rebecca's stare. "I think I'll just stay out here a little while longer so I can find out what is going on with Ash and Beave to tell her."

Rebecca rolled her eyes at Cappie as she moved her hands to the sides of her waist. "You're stalling bucko," she said in a motherly tone.

"Am not," Cappie replied.

"You are too!" she exclaimed. "You're mad at her for choosing Ashleigh before herself and here you are choosing to find out what is going on with Ash and Beave before dealing with your own issues."

"Alright, you win," Cappie sighed. "I guess I am stalling a bit. I just don't know what exactly I should say to her."

"Hey, don't look at me for the answers," said Rebecca. "I have just as much luck giving you relationship advice as you do hooking up with Ashleigh's brother."

"Ew," said Cappie glancing over at Ashleigh's family.

"Exactly," said Rebecca with a small laugh. "But I guess what I can tell you is to just speak from the heart. Don't be afraid to tell her how you feel as long as you're not saying it in an angry tone. There's no reason why you two can't work this out, you've been through a lot worse before."

Cappie was about to respond when Beaver interrupted them as he busted through the doors.

"I'M A DADDY!" he exclaimed as everyone ran over to him and offered their congratulations.

Rebecca and Cappie joined the group, but stood more towards the back.

"Ashleigh and the babies are doing just fine," said Beaver. "Ashleigh is resting up a bit before she goes to see the babies. They are keeping them in the nursery just as a precautionary measure."

"Have you held them yet?" asked Ashleigh's mom.

"Not exactly," Beaver replied. "We kind of held them when they were born and put on Ashleigh's stomach but I wanted to wait to hold them until Ashleigh is well and strong enough to share it with me."

"Are they cute?" Ashleigh's sister asked.

"They are so cute," said Beaver with a big smile. "I can't wait for you guys to meet them."

"When can we see them?" Rebecca shouted from the back, making Beaver feel almost like he was holding a press conference with all the questions being thrown at him.

"As soon as Ashleigh and I get a little time with them we'll get you guys in to see them," said Beaver. "We just need a little time to recover."

Beaver talked a little bit more about the birth until he went back into the wing leaving everyone to continue to wait and discuss among themselves.

"Well, that's your cue," said Rebecca turning to look at Cappie.

"What are you talking about?" Cappie asked.

"Beaver said it's going to be a little while until we get to see the babies," said Rebecca. "So get your ass back there and talk to your wife and make up so we can start the celebration."

"I guess it's now or never," Cappie mumbled as he showed his bracelet to the desk nurse and she unlocked the doors for him.

"And don't forget to kiss her!" he heard Rebecca yell as the doors closed behind him. "It's a stress reliever!"

He let out a small smile at her remark as he began walking down the hall. But instead of stopping at Casey's room he noticed Beaver staring through the window to the nursery. He decided to go up to him instead, stalling the inevitable just a little while longer.

"Congratulations man," said Cappie as he walked up to Beaver and the two of them hugged.

"Man Cap, it was incredible," said Beaver as he backed away. "Just seeing those tiny lives come into this world was the most amazing experience."

"I hear ya," said Cappie letting out a little smile as he thought about how he felt when Cadence was born. "So, which ones are they?" Cappie asked as he turned his gaze into the nursery where Beaver was looking.

"Right in the center," said Beaver pointing through the glass. "The two cradles right next to each other, one with the blue hat and the other with the pink."

"They look so peaceful," said Cappie as he continued to stare into the nursery.

"Well, they've been through a lot," said Beaver. "It's no wonder why they are sleeping now."

"Did you guys decide on names yet?" Cappie asked.

"Sure did," Beaver replied. "Matthew Allen was born first at 4 pounds 3 ounces and Maddison Grace was second at 3 pounds 8 ounces."

"Wow, they are so small compared to what Cadence was," said Cappie.

"I'm just so glad they are healthy," said Beaver. "I couldn't have asked for anything better."

"I thought you guys decided on names that either started with an 'A' or a 'B'?" Cappie asked as he remembered previous conversations with Beaver and Ashleigh about it.

"We were," Beaver replied. "But we were having trouble coming up with two names that sounded like they were twins but still unique to one another. So we ended up taking a different path and came up with Matthew and Maddison, Matt and Maddy for short of course."

"I think those are perfect names," said Cappie. "Definitely good choices."

"Thanks," Beaver replied.

The two men stood there for another couple of minutes just staring into the nursery. Beaver didn't want to let the babies out of his sight and Cappie was somewhat overcome with emotion as he relived the moments after Cadence's birth and how happy he was.

"Oh, how is Casey? Is everything alright?" Beaver asked finally breaking the silence.

"Everything is fine with her," Cappie replied. "No need to worry and make sure Ashleigh knows not to worry either. It was more like a false alarm."

"I'll definitely let Ashleigh know since I'm sure she's worried about Casey," said Beaver. "And speaking of Ashleigh, I guess I should probably go and see how she is doing."

"Yeah, and I should go and check on Casey," Cappie stated. "She's in room 3010 if you or Ash want to stop by and see her."

"I thought you said it was a false alarm?" Beaver asked turning to look at Cappie. "Why is she admitted up here?"

"To be safe the doctors think it's best to just keep her here through the rest of her pregnancy," said Cappie. "But she's alright, we're both alright."

"Good to hear bro," said Beaver as he and Cappie hugged again. "I've learned very quickly today that there is nothing better than a happy and healthy family. I feel like the luckiest guy in the world."

"You are lucky," said Cappie. "We both are," he mumbled a little more silently to himself as a light bulb appeared to go off in his head.

"Well, I guess I'll catch you around here later then huh?" Beaver asked.

"Sure will," Cappie replied.

"See ya," said Beaver as he turned to walk down the hall back to Ashleigh's room.

Cappie stood there for a few seconds longer and looked into the nursery at all the new babies. He felt a smile come over his face knowing that he would be a proud daddy again soon. Beaver was right; there is nothing more amazing in the world than watching your child being born. And he realized that it was his job to keep that child as safe and as healthy as he possibly could and that meant bringing the least amount of stress possible to Casey's life. He had already wasted enough time avoiding the situation with her. It was time for them to talk.

He took a deep breath as he walked towards her room which wasn't far from the nursery window. Her door was still shut, probably from when he slammed it on his way out the last time he left. His heart began to race as he put his hand on the door handle and turned to open it.

The room was still as dark as he left it, the only light coming from the lamp next to her bed. Casey was on her side in a fetal position facing away from the door. He couldn't tell if she was awake or not but he had a good guess she wasn't with everything that was probably racing through her mind.

He quietly shut the door behind him and slowly walked over to the bed and around to the side she was facing. He pulled a chair right up next to her bed and sat down. Her eyes were closed but he could easily see the black streaks down her cheeks from the crying she had been doing. He gently took his hand and tucked a piece of her hair behind her ear, knowing this would tell him if she was really asleep or not. And sure enough, she wasn't. She opened her eyes and gave him an almost surprised expression, obviously not expecting him to be there.

"Can we talk?" Cappie asked softly.

"Sure," Casey replied as she reached up to wipe the tears out of her eyes.

Casey sat up a little more in the bed as Cappie scooted closer and took her hand. He looked her straight in the eyes and could see they were already filled with water, it was only a matter of time before the tears came pouring out.

"I first just want to say that I'm sorry," said Cappie as he continued to look deep into her eyes. "I was angry and some of the things that were coming out of my mouth were hurtful and I didn't mean to hurt you."

"No," she said shaking her head as a tear escaped out of each of her eyes. "I'm the one that should apologize. You were completely right. I didn't even think about the consequences of coming here tonight. I also didn't think about how you would feel. Seeing the terrified look on your face when you first came in my room was when it all kind of hit me like a ton of bricks. I never meant to hurt you either and knowing that I did is really killing—me—inside."

Casey hesitated on the last three words, trying her hardest not to cry but she was definitely losing the battle as tears continued to stream down her face.

"Case, the most important thing right now is that you and the baby are safe and as healthy as you can be," said Cappie as he squeezed her hand. "That is all I ever want right now. It's scary to think what stress for you can do to the baby and the last thing I want is to be the cause of your stress."

"But I deserve it Cap," said Casey. "What I did was a horrible thing. And now I've screwed everything up by coming here and having to stay here for the next month. I thought being at the house on bed rest was bad but this place is awful. I've been here for two hours and I already feel like these white walls are caving in on me."

"Case, calm down," said Cappie as he reached up with his other hand and brushed some of the tears off of her cheeks. "I know this may not seem like the best situation but it is also the safest situation. You're surrounded by medical staff who can help you if anything were to go wrong for any reason. And I promise that I'll do what I can to make this more bearable for you. I'll bring Cadence here to see you, I'll bring you all your magazines and books from home, I'll—"

"It's never going to be the same Cap," Casey interrupted him. "Nothing is going to be the same anymore. I feel like I've failed you. I feel like I've let you down."

Casey pulled her hand from Cappie's and buried her face in both of her hands as she cried.

"I—I—I—can't lose you C—C—Cap," said Casey as best as she could through her hysterical crying. "I'm—so—so—sorry. So—so—sorry."

Cappie stood up off the chair and sat on the edge of Casey's bed. He then wrapped both of his arms around her as tightly as he could.

"Shhhhhh," he whispered in her ear, trying to get her to calm down. "I'm not going anywhere Case. I'm in this forever."

It took several minutes for Casey to really calm down. Cappie gently rubbed his hands up and down her back to help her relax. He was worried with as worked up as she was and he knew doctors were liable to run in any minute if she didn't calm down. Cappie finally felt her move her hands from her face and wrap them around his waist. She squeezed him so tightly he lost his breath for a second but quickly regained his composure and continued to rub her back.

Another few minutes passed before Casey finally backed away, keeping her eyes completely fixed on his.

"Why the sudden change Cap?" she asked. "You were so furious with me when you left here over an hour ago. I almost thought you weren't even going to come back with the last remark you made before slamming the door shut."

"Well I first had a talk with Heath and Calvin," said Cappie taking her hands into his. "Heath allowed me to see the medical side of things. If the two of us were fighting and not getting along that would add more stress on you and in turn raise your blood pressure and affect the baby. There was no way I could let that happen."

Cappie watched as Casey broke her gaze from him and looked down at the bed.

"You don't have to be nice to me just to prevent me from being stressed," she mumbled. "I'm a big girl. I can handle it."

Cappie reached up and put his hand on the bottom of her chin and made her look up at him.

"And Calvin allowed me to see why you did it," said Cappie, completely ignoring the comment Casey had just made. "He reminded me of what a big heart you have Casey and I admire that about you. I know how important Ashleigh is to you and I know you had her best interest in mind. Sometimes I think your heart may control you a little bit more than it should and that is why you're now in this situation."

"So are still mad at me then because I made the wrong decision and listened to my heart," said Casey, not really sure if she was making it a statement or a question to Cappie.

"And then I saw Beaver," said Cappie continuing on with his explanation like he never heard Casey say anything to him. "And I saw the two beautiful babies he was looking at in the nursery as he described how incredible the birth of his children was. And that made me think back to when Cadence was born and how happy and full of emotion both of us were."

Casey watched as Cappie's eyes began to water.

"And that is when I realized that the two of us have so much more to live for than to holding onto this argument. We have a beautiful daughter who has brought more joy to both of our lives than either of us could imagine. And soon we are going to have a son to add to our family and nothing is more important than his and your health. I want to be standing here a month from now with tears streaming down my face as I watch the birth of our son, coaching you the entire way. I want him to cry as loud as he can as soon as he is born and get a healthy report from the doctor. And I want you. I want you to be here with me for the rest of our lives. I want you to grow old with me and be right next to me as we raise our children. I need you and my family Casey more than ever and that is why I forgive you. I understand what you did and why you did it and now it's time for us to move on and put it in the past. I'm more than willing to do that if you are. I love you Case, more than anything in the entire world."

Cappie reached up and wiped a tear out of his eye before it could fall down his cheek. He really didn't want to cry at the moment; Casey had already done enough for the both of them tonight.

"That was one of the most beautiful things you have ever said to me Cap," said Casey once he was finished. "And I feel the exact same way. I'm so sorry for everything that I did. If I could think about it more and take it all back I would in a heartbeat."

"Hey, no need to dwell on the past right now," said Cappie bringing his hand up to her lips. "It's done. It's over with and now we need to think about the future OK?"

"OK," said Casey softly as she nodded her head.

And then she was taken by surprise as Cappie suddenly leaned forward and planted his lips on hers. She smiled slightly against his lips before she pulled him closer to deepen the kiss, making sure he knew how much she loved him and relieved she was that he forgave her. After a minute or so of kissing Cappie pulled away.

"And that was Rebecca's advice," he said with a laugh. "She said kissing is a good stress reliever."

"Well, the girl certainly knows her stuff," said Casey seductively as she leaned forward and kissed Cappie again.

But soon after she started Casey abruptly pulled away from Cappie and looked right at him.

"Wait, did I hear you say that the babies were born?" she asked excitedly.

"Yes they are," Cappie replied. "But currently Ashleigh is resting while the babies are sleeping in the nursery. Beaver will let us know when they are ready for visitors."

"Wow, I guess it is pretty late huh?" Casey asked looking up at the clock.

"It certainly is," Cappie replied. "So why don't we lie down and I'll tell you everything about the babies that I know."

"Sounds perfect to me," said Casey as she allowed enough room for Cappie to lie down next to her. She then snuggled right into the nook of his arm while he began the story. She knew this was exactly where she was supposed to be.

* * *

_**A/N: I know a lot of you were waiting for Casey and Cappie to make up so I hope you liked how things turned out. And how good was the last scene of the episode on Monday? The next episode is the one that I saw shot while I was on the set so it's going to be extra exciting to watch :0) **_

_**Please review...hearing what you guys think really keeps me motivated! Thanks!**_


	145. First Impressions

FIRST IMPRESSIONS

Beaver made his way quietly into Ashleigh's room so he didn't wake her up if she was asleep. But she turned and looked at him as soon as he walked in.

"Hey, how are you feeling?" he asked as he sat on the edge of her bed.

"I have just been resting because I can't sleep," Ashleigh replied. "I keep thinking about the babies and everything that has happened."

"It was a pretty crazy moment wasn't it?" Beaver asked.

"I didn't think I was going to make it for a bit there," said Ashleigh with a deep breath.

"You did just fine," said Beaver as he kissed her hand. "I am so proud of you. You did an amazing job."

"Was everyone excited when you told them?" Ashleigh asked.

"Oh yeah," Beaver replied with a small laugh. "They were asking me a ton of questions and wanted to know when they could see them. But I told them that you and I wanted to see them and spend some time with them first."

"I can't wait to hold them," said Ashleigh. "Are they going to bring them in here?"

"I believe we have to go into the nursery to see them," said Beaver. "I saw they were hooked up to some wires and things so I don't think they can leave."

"Well then what are we waiting for?" Ashleigh asked. "Let's go see the babies!"

"You don't have to ask me twice," said Beaver as he got the wheelchair that was in the corner of the room and brought it over to Ashleigh.

Ashleigh slowly sat up on the edge of the bed and Beaver helped her get into the wheelchair from there. He helped her put a blanket over her legs and then wheeled her out into the hallway and down to the nursery. The two of them showed their wristbands to the ladies in the nursery and then were able to go over to the babies. Beaver sat down in a chair next to their cradles as the nurse lifted Matthew out of his cradle and put him in Beaver's arms. Beaver looked down at his son's face and smiled. He could see he was trying so hard to open his eyes and look at Beaver but just wasn't able to do so. The nurse then picked up Maddison and handed her to Ashleigh.

"Maddison has been a little fussy compared to Matthew," said the nurse. "But both of them are doing well overall. They both have heart monitors on which can be easily bumped out of place when you are holding them so don't be alarmed if you hear some loud beeping."

"Thanks," said Ashleigh as she watched the nurse walk away.

Ashleigh lifted the hat off of Maddison a little to see the dark hair on the top of her head. She could tell Maddison had gotten her hair. She then lightly brushed her soft cheek and bent down to give her a little kiss. The baby cooed a little when Ashleigh did this, causing her to smile.

"Is she already talking to you?" Beaver asked.

"Something like that," Ashleigh said with a laugh.

"Maybe we have the next baby Einstein," Beaver joked. "Or in her case, Einsteena or something along those lines."

Ashleigh could tell that Beaver was nervous. He was always trying to make silly jokes when he was nervous.

"I think Maddison has your nose," said Ashleigh as she looked over at Beaver.

"Well they both certainly got your hair," said Beaver as he lifted Matthew's hat up a bit to expose his dark hair.

"It's crazy to think that the two of them are made of both you and me," said Ashleigh. "They truly are little miracles."

Just then Matthew began to cry.

"Oh no, OK, what do I do?" Beaver began to panic a little bit.

"Just relax, babies cry all the time," Ashleigh tried to calm him down. "Try rocking him back and forth in your arms a little bit."

Beaver began to do that but instantly the loud beeping of the heart monitor began to go off. One of the nurses ran over to see what was going on.

"I'm sorry," said Beaver as the nurse adjusted the leads on the baby. "He started crying and I was just trying to rock him back and forth and then this happened and—"

"You're doing fine dad," the nurse interrupted. "He's probably just getting hungry. I'll go and get you a bottle ready."

Beaver looked at Ashleigh with a worried expression on his face as the nurse left.

"Honey, you're doing fine," said Ashleigh. "Dealing with the babies is going to be a learning experience for the both of us. But I have no doubt in my mind that we're going to do just fine."

"I know, I just have to get some confidence when it comes to them," said Beaver. "It's kind of overwhelming holding them for the first time and really accepting the role of parents all of a sudden. Don't get me wrong, I am so excited about this. But just a little nervous at the same time."

"I know and there is nothing wrong with that," said Ashleigh as she began to rock Maddison in her arms. "Plus we have another couple of days here at the hospital before we take them home. I'm sure the nurses will go over diaper changes and feedings and all that stuff before we leave."

"It's like going back to school," said Beaver with a small laugh. "Baby 101."

"Exactly," Ashleigh replied as the nurse came back with two bottles.

"I went ahead and made them both bottles," she said. "Because if one is hungry it's a safe bet to say that the other one is too. Just gently put the nipples up to their mouths and they should start feeding."

Beaver put the bottle up to Matthew's mouth and smiled as he instantly put it in his mouth and began to suck on it.

"Hey, that was pretty easy," he said looking over at Ashleigh who had more of a troubled look on her face. "What's wrong Ash?" he asked.

"She's not taking the bottle," Ashleigh said as she kept it right in front of Maddison's lips.

"Maybe if you bring her head up a little bit more," said the nurse.

Ashleigh did as she was told and Maddison took the bottle in her mouth but for only a few seconds.

"Maybe she isn't hungry," Beaver suggested.

"That could be it," said the nurse. "But Maddison is also smaller and probably a little underdeveloped compared to Matthew so that could explain it too. I'm sure she'll get the hang of it. But we'll keep an eye on her intake just to be on the safe side."

"Well I'll keep it here in case she wants to try again," said Ashleigh as the set the bottle down on the table next to her.

"Man, Matthew was sure hungry," said the nurse turning to Beaver and seeing the baby was almost finished with the bottle.

"That's my boy," said Beaver with a smile. "Matthew Allen Thompson. Don't forget that name, you'll be hearing it as the MVP of the National Football League twenty years from now. I guarantee it."

The nurse let out a little laugh as she walked away.

"So you're already planning our son's future sports career?" Ashleigh asked as she turned to look at Beaver.

"Of course," Beaver replied. "Gotta start them early."

The two of them sat for the next several minutes in silence, neither of them glancing away from the baby each one was holding.

"Do you wanna switch?" Ashleigh finally asked.

"Uh, sure," said Beaver with a little hesitation. "How do we, um, do this?"

"Go ahead and give me Matt so I'm holding both babies," said Ashleigh as she held out her other arm.

"You sure?" Beaver asked.

"Of course," Ashleigh replied.

Beaver stood up and gently lowered Matt into Ashleigh's right arm. He then stood back and looked at her for a second before he picked up Maddison.

"Aw," he said with a smile as he took out his phone and took a picture. "That's going on Facebook."

Ashleigh laughed as Beaver put his phone away and bent down to pick up Maddison out of her arms. He stood at first holding her, walking back and forth as far as the wires she was hooked up to would let him go.

"She's feels so much lighter than Matt," he said.

"Yeah, I can really tell the difference between the two of them," Ashleigh replied as she adjusted Matthew in her arms.

"I think it's kind of cool," said Beaver as he sat back down in the rocking chair next to Ashleigh. "It's like she'll always have her bigger brother to look out for her."

"That is kind of special," said Ashleigh. "I hadn't thought of it like that."

"It's getting really late," Beaver said looking up at the clock. "We should probably introduce everyone to the babies so they can go home and get some rest."

"Good idea," said Ashleigh.

Beaver gave Ashleigh Maddison again and went out into the waiting room to get their friends and family.

"Is it time?" Rebecca jumped out of her chair as soon as she saw Beaver.

"Yes, you can all go back but everyone can't be in the room at once," said Beaver. "So some of you will have to stand and look through the glass while you wait."

"That's fine, let's go," said Rebecca eagerly as she and everyone else followed Beaver into the unit.

Ashleigh and Beaver decided to let their parents in first.

"Gosh, I can't believe Beaver is a dad," said Heath as he and Calvin and Rebecca peered through the glass into the nursery.

"I am so happy for them, those babies look so cute," added Rebecca. "I'm sure they are going to be great parents as long as they learn to work with each other."

"Speaking of parents working together, I wonder how Cappie and Casey are doing?" Calvin asked.

"I don't know, let's go find out," said Rebecca as she turned towards Casey's room.

"Rebecca, you can't just go barging in there," said Heath noticing the door was closed.

"Of course I can," she said putting her hand on the door. "As their friend I have the special privileges."

"Whatever you say Bex," said Calvin rolling his eyes.

Rebecca opened the door and at first had a hard time adjusting her eyes to the darkness in the room compared to how light the hallway was. But once her eyes did adjust she could see Cappie and Casey both asleep in the bed and holding each other tightly. She smiled as she quietly stepped back and closed the door.

"Well?" Calvin asked as she joined them back at the nursery.

"Everything is just fine," Rebecca replied with a smile.

* * *

Cappie woke up the next morning with Casey in his arms. The two of them were exhausted and fell asleep very quickly after he told her everything he knew about Ashleigh and the babies. He knew Casey was excited to see them and was hoping the doctor would at least let her out of bed for a little bit so she could go and visit them.

Cappie reached his arm over and put it on Casey's stomach. He smiled as he felt the baby kick against his hand a couple of times.

"Thanks for the wakeup call," he heard Casey say in a soft voice. "He's been kicking for the past couple of hours and finally stopped but you just had to go and put your hand on me."

"Oh, I'm sorry," said Cappie feeling a little guilty.

"It's OK," she said as she wrapped her hand around his waist. "I'm sure I'll have plenty of time to sleep over the next few weeks."

Cappie lifted her face to look up at his and softly kissed her on the lips.

"We're OK right?" he asked. "I don't want any lingering feelings about what happened. We just need to concentrate and keeping you healthy until Cappie Jr. comes."

"I have no lingering feelings," Casey replied. "I'm glad we were able to work things out."

Just then Cappie's cell phone rang.

"Hey mom," he said answering the phone.

"Is everything OK there?" Mrs. Cappington asked. "I haven't heard anything for a while so I decided to call and check in."

"Casey and the baby are fine," Cappie replied. "But the doctor wants to keep her here until the baby is born. It looks like I'm going to need your help now more than ever if your offer to stay still stands."

"Of course it does," she replied. "Gosh, that's so sudden that she has to stay there. Are you sure?"

"I think in the end it will turn out to be the best thing," said Cappie. "It's hard to say when she'll go into labor and being at the hospital is probably the best place for her until that happens."

"Cadence has been asking for you two all morning," said Mrs. Cappington.

"We miss her too," Cappie replied. "I'll probably come home in a little bit to pick her up and bring her up to the hospital to spend some time with Casey. You're more than welcome to come to if you want."

"Nah, that will give me some time to get some laundry and cleaning done so I'll stay at here."

"If you insist," said Cappie. "I'll give you a call when I'm on my way."

Just as Cappie was hanging up the phone Dr. Snyder came into the room. Cappie quickly scooted out of the bed while Casey moved to the middle.

"Hey, no need to move for me," Dr. Snyder said with a small laugh. "You looked comfortable."

"I was," said Casey as she sat up a little bit in the bed. "So what's going on doctor?"

"I just stopped in to check up on you since I was also checking on Ashleigh down the hall," Dr. Snyder replied. "Have you seen the babies? They are beautiful."

"No, I haven't yet," Casey replied. "Am I able to go to the nursery to see them?"

Dr. Snyder kind of hesitated and Cappie noticed it.

"Something wrong?" Cappie asked.

"I don't want to alarm you guys too much," said Dr. Snyder. "But I was looking at Casey's blood pressure readings over night and she had a couple of spikes that I'm a little concerned about."

"Well, what does that mean?" Casey asked in a worried tone.

"It's hard to tell right now," Dr. Snyder replied. "But I am going to start having the nurses look in on you a little closer and it's important to really stick to the bed rest orders as much as possible."

Cappie went over and put his hand on Casey's shoulder.

"Doc, is it possible that the baby is going to come earlier than expected given all these issues?" Cappie asked.

"It's not only possible, it's very likely," Dr. Snyder replied. "If things get any worse we may even have to induce labor earlier than expected."

"Just the news I wanted to hear," said Casey with a sigh.

"No need to get all worked up right now," said Dr. Snyder. "I was just telling you that as a possibility. It doesn't mean that it's going to happen. You may go all the way to your due date with no problems at all. It's just really hard to tell. What I would like to do right now though is get an ultrasound and just make sure everything is alright and we didn't miss anything."

"Miss anything? What would you have missed?" Cappie asked.

"I just want to make sure that the placenta is still intact and everything inside is normal," said Dr. Snyder.

"Well, whatever you feel is best," said Cappie.

"Alright, I'll be back in a bit with the ultrasound machine," said Dr. Snyder as she left the room.

Cappie immediately turned to look at Casey.

"This can't be good Cap," said Casey giving him a worried expression.

"No need at the moment to get all worked up," said Cappie. "Maybe the spikes she is talking about happened while we were arguing or something. And now that everything is fine between us then everything will be fine with the baby."

"I hope you're right Cap," said Casey. "I know the baby will probably be OK if we have to deliver it soon but I really want to give him the best chance by being inside of me for as long as possible."

"I couldn't agree more," Cappie replied.

Cappie leaned down and kissed Casey's forehead as Dr. Snyder and the nurse Mark wheeled the ultrasound machine in the room.

"Alright, let's take a look at this baby," said Dr. Snyder.

Casey laid on her back and lifted her gown up exposing her stomach as Cappie sat in the chair next to the bed. Dr. Snyder put the gel on and began the ultrasound.

"There he is," said Casey with a little gasp in her voice.

Cappie took her hand and kissed the back of it softly, overwhelmed with as much emotion as Casey was. They both watched the screen intently as Dr. Snyder looked at the baby and placenta closely, making sure everything was OK.

"Good news," she said with a smile. "I don't see any tears in the placenta and the baby looks just fine."

"That's great," said Cappie as he smiled at Casey.

"Have I ever showed you guys the 3D ultrasound?" Dr. Snyder asked.

"What's that?" Casey asked.

"I'll show you," said Dr. Snyder as she adjusted some of the controls on the machine.

And suddenly instead of the bland black and white, the baby was now in color and they could see details in the skin.

"Oh my gosh," said Casey as she watched Dr. Snyder move the ultrasound around to show the baby's arms and legs.

"Look, five toes on each foot," said Cappie with a smile as he pointed to the screen. "This is so cool."

And then Dr. Snyder finally found the baby's head where he was peacefully sucking his thumb.

"Look at his face Cap!" said Casey in an excited voice. "He looks just like you!"

"Maybe a little bit," said Cappie blushing as he continued to stare at the screen. He couldn't take his eyes off of it.

"I can't believe you've never showed us this before," said Casey as she looked at Dr. Snyder.

"It kind of brings a whole new reality to things seeing the baby like this doesn't it?" Dr. Snyder asked.

"Most definitely," Casey replied.

She then looked over at Cappie and waved her hand in front of his face to get his attention as his gaze was still fixed on the screen.

"Sorry," he said shaking his head. "I just can't believe how real that looks."

"He's certainly a cute baby already," said Casey as she now brought Cappie's hand up to her lips and kissed it.

"Alright, I have to get going," said Dr. Snyder as she turned off the machine and wiped the gel off of Casey's stomach. "I'm very glad everything is OK though."

"Me too," Casey replied. "You had me worried there for a second."

"As I said we'll keep a close eye on you but I think things are going to turn out just fine," Dr. Snyder replied as she went over to the sink and washed her hands. "I'll check in with you periodically. Be sure to let the nurses know if you need anything."

"Thanks doctor," said Cappie as she left the room and shut the door.

"Yay! I'm so glad everything is OK," said Casey as she turned to look at Cappie.

"That is great news babe," said Cappie as he squeezed her hand. "And how cool was it to actually see the baby?"

"You were certainly mesmerized," said Casey with a small laugh. "It wasn't easy getting your attention."

Cappie stood up and leaned in to give Casey a soft kiss on the lips.

"I love you," he said softly. And then he reached down and rubbed her stomach. "And I love this baby."

"Well we both love you too," said Casey with a smile as she kissed him again.

The moment was briefly broken up with Cappie's cell phone ringing again.

"It's Rusty," he said looking at the phone. "Probably just calling to check up on you."

"Well answer it," said Casey eagerly.

"Hey Russ," said Cappie as he answered the phone.

"Cap, we h—" Rusty began to say but the phone began to cut out.

"Hold on Russ," said Cappie as he moved closer to the windows in the room hoping to get a better reception.

"Can you hear me better now?" Rusty asked.

"Loud and clear," said Cappie. "What's up?"

"Cap, we have a problem," was all Rusty replied.

* * *

_**A/N: Hey everyone! First, I just wanted to say that I am so thankful to all of you for your wonderful comments you left on the last chapter. It really makes my day :0) Next, how about that episode last night? I finally got to see the scenes that I saw and it was driving me CRAZY not being able to share them with everyone LoL! I got to see the one where Spidey wakes Rusty up in the morning, the one where Calvin, Rusty and Dale are in the apartment (just a little of it though because they were just finishing up when I got there), the scene where Casey finds Rusty in the dumpster and of course the greatest scene of them all...Cappieland! LoL! And now that the episode has aired I can share some pictures with you guys if you want to see them :0) Unfortunately this thing keeps easing the link when I post it here so I'm going to have to send the link to those of you who want to see them. So you can let me know in your reviews if you want the link and I'll reply to the review or you can send me a private message and I'll send it that way. If there are a lot of people not signed up who want the link I'll see if I can find someway to get it to you but for right now I'm not sure how I can do it.**_

_**Anyway, I could probably talk for hours about my experience but I won't...hehe. I'll be happy to answer any questions you guys have though so send me a message if you want to know more. Sorry this chapter wasn't too exciting but I hope the cliffhanger still leaves you interested :0) Keep the reviews coming!**_


	146. Faithful Hero

FAITHFUL HERO

"What's going on Russ?" Cappie asked, his expression becoming worried given Rusty's tone.

"I just got a call from Spidey," said Rusty. "All hell is breaking loose."

"What do you mean by that?" Cappie asked.

"Well you know how Dean Bowman retired after last semester?" Rusty asked.

"Yeah, I think I read that in the alumni newsletter Casey and I got," said Cappie. "But what does that have anything to do with anything?"

"A new dean has taken over," Rusty replied. "Dean Dickhead."

"What?" Cappie asked letting out a small laugh. "That seriously can't be his name."

"OK, it's not his name," Rusty said with a sigh. "It's actually Dean Dickman—"

"I'm not so sure that is much better," interrupted Cappie continuing to laugh.

"Cap, I'm trying to be serious here," said Rusty.

"You're the one who called him Dean Dickhead!" Cappie countered. "But I'm sorry, carry on."

"Dean Dickman apparently does not like the Greek system," said Rusty. "He thinks all we're about is partying and hooking up with each other. And he's making a motion to the executive board next month to have all the houses disbanded and no Greek system left on campus."

"Oh my god, can he do that?" Cappie asked.

"He's the dean! He can do anything he wants!" Rusty replied, almost yelling into the phone.

"OK, OK, calm down," said Cappie. "What are the guys doing to try and stop this?"

"Nothing," Rusty replied. "That's why Spidey called me to call you. You're the master of diabolical plans. You've gotta help them."

"Russ, no offense, but I haven't been in the Greek system in years," Cappie replied.

"But you're still a Kappa Tau," said Rusty. "Kappa Taus are for life. And how would you feel knowing that other boys aren't going to be able to join the Greek system at CRU because it will no longer be there?"

"You certainly have a point," said Cappie as he stared out the window. "I'm just not sure what I can do from here. You're sister can go into labor at any moment. There's no way I can leave now."

"You've got to be able to do something from there at least Cap," said Rusty. "Anything you can think of can at least help the cause."

Cappie took a deep breath, pausing to think of possible ideas.

"Think about your son Cap," Rusty continued, trying to play the sympathy card on Cappie because he knew it usually worked. "Don't you want him to follow in your footsteps and become the legacy of the KT legend that is Cappie? He's not going to be able to do that if there is no Greek system."

Cappie turned around and looked at Casey and then moved his eyes down to her stomach. He had to admit he was extra excited they were having a boy this time around. He always imagined him joining the great KT brotherhood.

"Alright, let me think about it," said Cappie. "I'll talk things over with the others and see what we can come up with."

"Thanks Cap, I knew you would come through," said Rusty.

"You're welcome," Cappie replied. "But I can't promise anything yet."

"Hey, by the way, how is Case?" Rusty asked changing the subject before Cappie doubted himself even more.

"She's doing fine," Cappie replied. "We just had an ultrasound of the baby and the doctor said things look really good."

"Keep me posted," said Rusty. "You know I'll be on the first plane home as soon as she goes into labor."

"We will Russ, no worries," Cappie replied.

"Alright well I've got to get back to work," said Rusty. "Tell Case I love her and thanks again for helping."

"I haven't promised anything yet," said Cappie.

"I know," Rusty replied. "But you'll think of something, I just know it."

"Talk to you later Russ," said Cappie as he hung up the phone.

"What was that all about?" Casey asked as Cappie walked over to her.

"I'm not sure if you even want to know," he sighed as he plopped back down in the chair next to her bed.

* * *

Casey was relaxing in her bed later that afternoon thinking about what she could possibly do to help save the Greek system at CRU. Cappie had gone back to the house to pick up some things for her and bring Cadence back to visit. She was just about to turn over and go to sleep when there was a knock on her door.

"Come in," she said.

"I hope you're not too tired for some visitors," said Rebecca as she opened the door and pushed Ashleigh in a wheelchair into the room.

"Oh my gosh! Ash! Bex!" exclaimed Casey. "I feel like it's been forever since I've seen either of you!"

Casey at first attempted to get out of the bed and run up to give them hugs but she was quickly reminded of her restrictions with the blood pressure monitor tightly affixed to her arm.

"Now no getting up, we'll come to you," said Ashleigh as she stood up to give Casey a hug.

"How are you feeling? How are the babies?" Casey asked as she backed away.

"Everything is just fine," Ashleigh replied sitting back down in the wheelchair. "Rebecca and I were just in the nursery feeding them their afternoon snack."

"I'm so bummed I can't get out of this bed to go and see them," said Casey as Rebecca replaced Ashleigh and gave her a hug.

"I have a few pictures on my phone if you want to see," said Ashleigh pulling out her phone and handing it to Casey.

"Oh my gosh they are so little!" said Casey. "And look at their hair! They totally got that from you Ash."

"I know right?" Ashleigh said with a laugh.

"And how are things with you?" Rebecca asked as she sat in a chair next to Ashleigh. "Are you and Cappie OK?"

"We're fine," Casey replied. "But he's been a little preoccupied with the news about the Greek system he got from Rusty this morning."

"I know, Beaver told us all about it," said Ashleigh. "Bex and I were thinking of things we could do to help but we really couldn't come up with anything."

"I thought of the idea of my dad just writing a big fat check to the university but refusing to authorize it until the dean committed to the Greek system staying," said Rebecca with a sly smile.

"You know, that actually doesn't sound so bad," said Casey.

"Only until my whole family goes to prison for bribery," said Rebecca. "And I'm pretty sure I don't want to take that chance. I like my freedom thank you very much."

"And we value your freedom too," said Ashleigh as she rolled her eyes at Rebecca. "But as good as it sounds that idea is pretty farfetched. I'm just not sure what else we can do."

"I'm not sure there is anything to do," Casey said with a sigh. "The new dean seems pretty set on his decision."

"But at least he still has to go through the executive board," said Rebecca. "And if I'm not mistaken I think Evan's dad might know a few people on the board. I could always have him talk to them."

"Yeah, that does sound like a start at least," said Ashleigh.

"I guess any bit will help at this point," Casey replied. "We just don't know if the dean has already gotten to the executive board. Because if so, that's a lot of minds to change."

"Well let's hope he hasn't even mentioned this to the board members yet," said Ashleigh.

"I'm pretty sure they know given that fact that it's on their agenda to discuss next month Ash," said Rebecca.

"Oh, good point," said Ashleigh, defeated.

"I just know Cap is really crushed by this," said Casey with a sigh. "He really wanted Caleb to follow in his footsteps and be a Kappa Tau when he grows up."

There was a brief silence in the room until Rebecca gasped. "Did you just let the baby's name slip out of your lips Miss Casey?" she asked eagerly.

"Uh oh," Casey mumbled. "You guys didn't hear that."

Ashleigh and Rebecca both laughed.

"Don't worry Case, your secret is safe with us," Ashleigh said with a wink.

"Cute name by the way," said Rebecca. "It fits nicely."

"Thanks," Casey replied, still upset she let the baby's name slip to her best friends. "So Bex, how long are you here for?" she continued, trying to change the subject.

"Good question," Rebecca replied. "I don't really have any plans. I'm pretty sure Evan will be here this weekend so maybe I'll go home with him or maybe I'll stay longer. Maybe I can stay and help Cappie out with Cadence."

"Actually Cappie's mom is staying with us and helping out," Casey replied.

"Cappie's mom?" Rebecca asked in a surprised tone. "How in the hell did that happen?"

"I'm still asking myself the same thing," Casey said with a small laugh. "But she found out about my bed rest and offered to stay and help out with things."

"Wow, how nice of her," said Ashleigh.

"So how long are you going to be here at the hospital Ash?" Casey asked.

"The doctor said I'll probably be released tomorrow or the next day," Ashleigh replied. "But she said that she's not sure if the babies will be able to go home at the same time."

"What?" Casey asked. "I thought they were healthy."

"For the most part they are," Ashleigh replied. "But both of them are still pretty small. And Maddy isn't eating as well as Matt. So it's possible I could go home with both of them, one of them or neither of them."

"Oh Ash," said Casey noticing the solemn expression that came over her. "I'm sure everything will work out just fine."

"I imagine it will be weird to leave the hospital without them," said Rebecca putting her arm around Ashleigh. "But I'm sure that if they do have to stay it won't be for too long."

"Thanks guys," said Ashleigh. "Beav and I are just trying to stay positive and take one day at a time."

"And that's the best thing you can do," said Casey. "It's what we did when Cadence was in the hospital with that infection and eventually everything worked out and got back to normal."

"I think my life is going to be far from normal again with two babies," said Ashleigh with a small laugh.

"You're right," said Rebecca. "But think of it as a new normal. One that I'm sure you and Beav will get used to sooner than later."

"You guys are the best," said Ashleigh as she smiled at Casey and Rebecca. "I don't know what I would do without you guys."

Just then Beaver walked in the room, interrupting their tender moment.

"There you guys are," he said as he walked up to Ashleigh. "I brought some food back from the cafeteria for you two. It's in your room."

"Oh yeah, I'm starving," said Rebecca as she stood up.

"Oh, but I don't want to leave Casey," Ashleigh whined.

"It's not a big deal Ash," said Casey. "Cappie should be back any second now. I'll be fine."

"Are you sure?" Ashleigh asked.

"MOMMY!" shouted Cadence as her and Cappie walked into the room.

"Yup, I'm sure," said Casey with an instant smile that came across her face as she looked at Cappie carrying Cadence up to her bed.

"Alright, I'll be back later," said Ashleigh as Rebecca and Beaver helped her out of the room.

"They sure left quickly," said Cappie as he set Cadence down on Casey's bed.

"Beaver had food," Casey replied.

"Ah, that explains it," said Cappie as he set the bags he was also carrying down on the dresser.

"Mommy are you sick?" Cadence asked as she scooted up towards the head of the bed.

"Just a little bit sweetheart," Casey replied as she put her arms around her daughter. "Mommy is going to be here at the hospital for a little while."

"You can't come home?" Cadence asked.

"Not until I have the baby," said Casey letting her go and pointing to her stomach.

"When is that?" Cadence asked.

Casey let out a small laugh. "Nobody knows," she replied. "Whenever the baby decides he wants to come out."

"Tomorrow," said Cadence smiling at her mom.

"I don't think it's going to be that soon," Casey replied.

"Tomorrow," Cadence said again, this time gently resting her hand on Casey's stomach.

"Did we raise some kind of psychic?" Cappie asked as he sat down in the chair next to Casey's bed.

"Apparently she thinks so," said Casey. "I just hope she's wrong. Having the baby tomorrow would be a little too soon."

"You're right," was all Cappie mumbled as he leaned back in the chair and pushed his hair out of his face.

Casey could tell he was stressed. The news of the Greek system along with everything she was going through has put a lot of pressure on Cappie.

"Cap, you sure you're OK?" Casey asked.

"Daddy you sick too?" Cadence asked.

"No honey, daddy is fine," said Cappie as he picked Cadence up and put her on his lap.

Cadence instantly reached for Cappie's watch. He has a dial on his watch that turns and Cadence has developed a habit of playing with it every time she's around him.

"The only thing I can think of to help is to have a fundraiser," said Casey. "But that's pretty dumb because it's not like they need money."

"Yeah, that doesn't quite fit," said Cappie.

"What about increasing each house's philanthropy hours or something like that to show the good side of fraternities and sororities?" Casey suggested.

"That's a good start," Cappie replied. "But the dean is already aware of the philanthropy hours the houses already do and it doesn't seem to sway his decision at all. It seems like the problem is the drinking and partying and hooking up."

"So then have them all stop drinking and partying for a while then," said Casey.

Cappie looked at her and playfully rolled his eyes. "Do you remember how horrible that was when Dean Bowman put all those restrictions on us? I for sure wasn't having any fun."

"Oh come on, the underground Great Gatsby party we threw together wasn't that bad," said Casey.

Cappie looked up and smiled at Casey. He remembered that night well. "It was tense but turned out better than expected. I think the hooch helped a bit too," he said as a winked at her.

"What's hooch?" Cadence interrupted their conversation.

"Uh, uh," Cappie couldn't think of a reply.

"It's the name of, uh, a dog," said Casey thinking of the first thing that came to her head.

"How did the doggie help?" Cadence asked very innocently.

"Well mommy petted the nice doggie and it helped calm her down," said Cappie.

"I want a doggie," said Cadence.

"Maybe after your new brother is born," said Casey. "Then we'll talk about it."

"OK!" said Cadence as she went back to playing with Cappie's watch.

Cappie and Casey met each others' eyes and let out small laughs.

"Good one," Cappie mouthed with his lips so only Casey could see.

"So, back to what we were talking about before," said Casey.

"I just don't think telling them no partying or drinking is going to help," said Cappie. "Sure they could organize some underground parties and things like that but the whole point of being a Greek is to have fun. We joined to make friends and have a good time. Think of how boring it would be to just hang out in the living room every night and watch TV."

"Yeah, you have a point," said Casey. "We just need to think of some way they can show the new dean that even though the Greeks party and have a good time, there is still good that comes out of it."

"Just look at us," said Cappie. "We were both Greeks and partiers and whatever else you want to call us but here we are now; successful, in love and about to have our second child."

"Look at all of us," Casey added. "Ashleigh and Beaver just had twins, Rebecca and Evan are doing well. Being Greek didn't hurt us, in fact it probably made us the people we are today."

Cappie sat deep in thought for a second before a light bulb went off in his head.

"That's it!" he said standing up and putting Cadence back on Casey's bed.

"Daddy I was playing," Cadence whined.

"Maybe it's not about showing the dean what the current members are doing," said Cappie ignoring Cadence's whine. "But instead showing him how the alumnae are doing and how much the Greek system helped shape our lives and didn't screw us up."

"Sounds like a great idea," said Casey. "But I'm not sure how you're going to get that point across. Are we all going to like write a letter or something?"

"No, it needs to be something that has more of an impact," said Cappie. "He's not going to want to read a ton of letters."

"True," Casey mumbled.

"You know, if you don't mind," said Cappie as he walked towards the door. "I want to run this by Ash and Beav and see what they have to say. Maybe they can come up with an idea."

"Oh, OK," said Casey who was kind of bummed Cappie was rushing out of the room.

"I'll be back in a little bit," he said as he opened the door. "Are you going to be OK with Cadence?"

"Yeah, we'll be fine," said Casey as she laid Cadence next to her in the bed. "We'll just relax and watch a little television."

"Perfect, I'll see you in a bit," said Cappie as he rushed out the door, making sure to close it quietly behind him this time around.

* * *

_**A/N: Hello! So last night's episode was fun. I liked seeing all the main characters all together for once. And of course we had a few cute Cappie and Casey scenes :0) But I swear if they bring back the whole Evan/Cappie/Casey love triangle I may just throw several things at the TV...LoL...just saying. I think they've kind of already beaten that idea to death. Can't they just let Cappie and Casey move on and be happy for once? Grrrrr...**_

_**OK, enough of my little rant there. Hope you guys like the new chapter! As always, feel free to let me know what you think :0)**_


	147. Day Dreaming

DAY DREAMING

Cappie ran around the next couple of days getting the things he needed to put his plan into action, which was really just a couple of video cameras. He at first thought it would be a good idea to get as many Greek alumnae as he could to show up to the executive board meeting and talk about their experiences and how much the Greek system affected their lives. But given the fact that realistically that wouldn't be able to happen with small babies in tow and alumnae living all over the globe, he opted for the next best thing; a video montage.

Cappie and Casey spent several hours on the phone calling various alumnae from their chapters to see if they would be interested in sending something for Cappie to add to the video. The response was pretty overwhelming and the word was spreading quickly.

Cappie was sitting in Casey's room playing around with one of the video cameras he had just bought when Calvin and Heath knocked and came into the room.

"Hey guys, what's up?" Cappie asked.

"We just wanted to come and say goodbye," said Calvin. "Heath is on call tomorrow and we have a long drive back home."

"Aw, we're going to miss you guys," said Casey as looked up from her laptop she was working on.

"Don't worry, I'm sure you'll see us again sometime soon," said Calvin as he went over and gave her a hug.

"It would be great if you guys could come back once this baby is born," said Casey as she rubbed her stomach.

"We'll try," said Calvin as he walked over to give Cappie a hug. "But I'm not sure if we'll have enough days off to be able to."

"But we're always available by phone," said Heath as he gave Casey a hug. "And you and Cap are going to constantly be in my thoughts," he added as he rubbed Casey's stomach. "I think you guys have been through enough and really deserve this baby to be healthy and happy."

"Thanks Heath," said Cappie as he shook his hand and gave him a hug.

"And you'll always have a doctor in the family if you need a second opinion," he said with a wink as he and Calvin began to walk back towards the door.

Cappie sat down and picked the video camera back up when he was struck with an idea.

"Hey wait," he said causing Calvin and Heath to turn back around. "Since you're here do you guys have a few minutes to record your messages for the video?"

Calvin and Heath looked at each other and nodded their head.

"Yeah, we should have a little time to do that," said Calvin.

"Great," said Cappie as he stood back up. "I found a little conference room down the hall that would be nice and quiet to do the recording."

"Lead the way," said Heath as they moved out of the way for Cappie to go out of the door.

"Be back in a little bit Case," he said as he walked out.

The three of them walked down the hall and past the waiting room to the conference room. Cappie was happy that it was empty at the time and walked right in. He got out the tripod for the camera and set it up on the table in the room.

"Alright," he said adjusting the settings on the camera. "Basically it's just going to be you guys looking into the camera like you're talking to the members of the executive board. And just talk about how the Greek system impacted your life."

"I can do that no problem," said Heath as he sat down in the chair in front of the camera.

"Hey, do you want the two of us to sit together and do this or separately?" Calvin asked Cappie.

"Um," Cappie thought for a second. "You know, I think the more separate people we have the more it may make an impact on the executive board so I would just do it separately if that is OK with you guys."

"Yeah, that's fine," said Calvin as he stood off to the side and watched Heath.

"Ready?" Cappie asked as he looked at Heath.

"Sure," Heath replied.

Cappie counted down with his fingers; three, two, one and then hit the record button.

"Hey executive board members my name is Heath and I'm a Kappa Tau, class of 2010," he began as he waved to the camera.

But before he continued Calvin began to laugh causing Cappie to stop the recording.

"I'm sorry," said Calvin still continuing to laugh. "You just sound like some sort of robot and that wave? I don't even know what to tell you about that honey."

"Yeah it did look kind of gay," said Cappie.

Heath looked at him and rolled his eyes.

"Um, OK, probably not the word to use," said Cappie trailing off.

"No, you pretty much described it perfectly," said Calvin with another small laugh.

"Maybe this would be better if the two of you stepped out of the room," said Heath as he glared at both of them.

"But who's going to run the camera?" Cappie asked.

"I have a medical degree Cap, I think I can press record on a video camera," Heath replied.

"OK, good point," said Cappie.

Cappie and Calvin looked at Heath one last time as the two of them slowly made their way out of the room and shut the door behind them.

"Finally," Heath mumbled under his breath. "Now let's see….." he trailed off as he stood up and looked at the camera and actually found another record button on the front of the camera. "Perfect," he said as he pressed it and sat back down in the chair.

"Hi members of the executive board, my name is Dr. Heath Masterson and I'm a Kappa Tau alum from 2010," he began, this time leaving out the "gay" wave. "I'm doing this video recording because I heard of the possibility of the Greek system getting shut down at Cyprus and I want to let you know how big of a mistake that will be. I joined Kappa Tau my freshman year because it was the quintessential slacker fraternity and that is what I was when I started college. I wasn't really sure what I was going to do with my life. But four years at Kappa Tau, believe it or not, really showed me the way. I just recently graduated medical school and started my residency at a hospital in Detroit. My brothers may not have helped me physically get into medical school but they were instrumental in helping emotionally. They rearranged the schedule spring semester of my junior year making sure I had ample study time knowing how important my grades were to get into medical school. But at the same time, they made sure I had time to relax and have a few hours in my day when I didn't have to think about school and grades and entrance exams. The day I found out I got into medical school they threw me the biggest party and I really felt like a star with all the congratulations and best wishes I got from each of them. I couldn't have asked for a better support system than the brotherhood at Kappa Tau. I've never really told anyone this but I know that without their love and support I probably wouldn't have gotten into medical school. I wouldn't have had the courage and strength to do it on my own."

Heath paused briefly and looked at the ground and then back up into the camera.

"Another part of my life that the Greek system affected was my love life. I met my husband Calvin, even though he is a member of another fraternity. It was hard at first to really be myself because I wasn't sure how my brothers were going to react to me being gay. But when I came out and told them, they were more than OK with it. They didn't make me feel any different and that really says a lot for a group of guys. Usually being gay singles you out and I'm sure a lot of men quit fraternities because their brothers don't approve of them. But Cyprus has one hell of a group in Kappa Tau."

Heath paused again briefly to collect his thoughts.

"I met my husband Calvin rush night of my junior year. We hit it off pretty good at the time but he wasn't quite ready to have a gay relationship and I guess I didn't really help the matter by cheating on him. But anyway, the two of us got back together my senior year and things have been great since. I just keep thinking that if it wasn't for that Greek rush party I may not have found the love of my life. Please, keep the Greek system alive. I'm just one person and look at everything it has done for me. I'm sure it's affected hundreds of thousands of others. I promise once I start making some real "doctor" money I'll make more donations to Cyprus and the Greek system if you choose to keep the chapters around. The Greek system changed my life and I know it will continue to affect the future men and women of Cyprus like it did me."

Heath smiled one last time at the camera before he stood up to stop the recording. He stood there for a few seconds collecting his thoughts before he went and opened the door.

"You can go now Calv," he said as he walked out to the waiting room where Calvin and Cappie were sitting.

"Did everything go alright?" Cappie asked.

"Yeah, the camera worked beautifully," Heath replied. "There's a record button on the front of the camera so it's easy to access," he said to Calvin as he walked by and headed into the room.

Calvin shut the door and went over to the chair in front of the camera.

"What am I going to say….." He mumbled under his breath before he started.

He then decided to just start talking with whatever came to his head. He pressed the record button and sat down in the chair.

"Hello, I'm Calvin Owens," he said and then paused. "I'm sorry," he continued sincerely looking at the camera. "I've never really done this before and it's kind of awkward."

Calvin let out a small nervous laugh.

"So I guess you're interested in hearing about my Greek experience. I am an Omega Chi legacy. My father was an Omega Chi and basically forced me to join the fraternity when I started college. I know it sounds kind of brutal and you're right, that's how I thought of it when I first went through rush. But looking back at it now I am so glad he made me join the fraternity. As a gay male I had a preconception of what my brothers would think and act if they ever found out I was gay and I actually did quit Omega Chi for a little bit because of that. But the brothers welcomed me back and I realized how wrong I was about how they would react. I mean, it was strange at first. There was an adjustment period but the Omega Chis are really a great group of guys and I'm lucky to have them as my brothers."

Calvin paused, unsure of what to say next. He almost stood up to turn the camera off when he collected his thoughts and continued.

"I have met a lot of my close friends because of the Greek system. And they aren't just my brothers in Omega Chi. I keep in touch with Ashleigh Howard, well now Thompson, who was a ZBZ and one of my best gal pals. And I met my best friend Rusty on rush night. By chance we were put in the same rush group and have been friends ever since. He's actually a Kappa Tau and I think it's important to mention that just because the Greeks have their own houses, doesn't mean they can't have friends in other houses. Even with the friction between Omega Chi and Kappa Tau, Rusty and I remained friends in the end. I would say that Rusty has been the most instrumental in helping me with my college and path and career. I was a junior and still didn't have a major. But seeing him so focused and passionate about his work drove me to find the same thing. Without him, I may still be in college right now."

Calvin let out a small laugh.

"OK, so maybe not still in college right now but you get the point," he said continuing to smile. "The connections I met through my Omega Chi brothers and alumnae have really helped the causes I believe in. I now run a non-profit organization helping out gay and lesbian teens and young adults in Detroit. We offer education, support and guidance for anyone needing it. A lot of my brothers gave the first donations to the organization when I first started it up and can't thank them enough for that to this day. My big brother Evan Chambers has been especially helpful. He was the one who encouraged me to come back to Omega Chi after I had quit and helped me find my true place in Omega Chi. And aside from all the serious and political stuff, Omega Chi made college fun for me. The formals, Greek competitions, themed parties and pranks all helped break up the monotony of being in school. It gave me some time to just step away from school and classes and let loose for a little bit. I know the new dean is concerned with drinking and partying and I'm not going to deny that there was any of that. But I can't remember a time when it ever got out of hand. It's not like we were all out running naked down Greek row, driving drunk or getting into any kind of trouble like that. We were just having fun. And I'm not sure why you would want to take that kind of fun out of college. I feel that as long as it doesn't affect grades and academics then what is the problem with having a little fun?"

Calvin paused again.

"I'm pretty sure my husband Heath already told you about us and how we met and everything," he continued. "So I won't bore you with the details again. But I will tell you that if I hadn't gone through rush that time I probably never would have met him. Heath makes me happy, he makes me laugh and I don't know where I would be or what I would be doing if I had never met him. And I have the Greek system to thank for that. I believe in life that everything happens for a reason. And the reason my father made me join a fraternity was to help shape my life. My career, my husband, my friends, they've all been made possible because of my affiliation with the Greek system. Being in a fraternity or a sorority is not a bad thing. It's actually a great thing. And I hope you don't take that opportunity away from future CRU students. They deserve to have the same experience I did."

And with that Calvin stood up and stopped the recording of the camera. He smiled thinking about everything he said as he walked back out to the waiting room.

"All done," he said as he walked up to Cappie and Heath.

"How was it?" Heath asked.

"Weird," said Calvin with a smile. "But once I started talking about my college life things started to come easily and it probably ended up a lot longer than I had planned for it to be."

"Thanks so much for doing this before you left guys," said Cappie. "It really means a lot to a lot of people."

"Not a problem Cap," said Heath. "Let us know if you need anything else."

"I sure will," said Cappie. "You guys have a safe drive home."

"We will," said Calvin and they all hugged one last time.

"Let us know if you hear if this idea works or not," said Calvin as he and Heath began to walk towards the elevator.

"You guys will be on the top of my list," said Cappie with a smile and a wave as he watched Calvin and Heath get into the elevator. "Bye."

* * *

Ashleigh sat alone in the wheelchair in her room with her belongings in her lap. She was being discharged today and Beaver was at the nurse's station signing her discharge paperwork. Being discharged was bittersweet for her. On one hand she was excited to leave the hospital because she wanted to get home to her own bed and have some home cooked food. But on the other hand she was leaving alone and it was a lot harder than she anticipated. The babies needed to stay at the hospital for further monitoring. Maddison still wasn't eating as much as she should and Matthew was having some issues with his heart rate going up and down. The nurses and doctors have all assured Ashleigh and Beaver that this was perfectly normal for twins who are born earlier than their due date and that they shouldn't be concerned but she couldn't help it. Things weren't going as they were planned and she didn't like it one bit.

"OK, we're all set," said Beaver as he walked into the room. "Did you say goodbye to Cappie and Casey?"

"Yeah," Ashleigh replied. "I told Casey I would stop in and see her tomorrow when I come back to be with the babies."

"Cap wants us to do that video message thing soon," said Beaver. "But I told him we needed a little time to get settled at home and make sure the babies were alright before we did that. He understood so we'll just do it when we're ready."

"That's good," Ashleigh replied.

"Alright, let's get out of here then," said Beaver as he got behind the wheelchair and began to push Ashleigh out the door.

The two of them took one last stop at the nursery to look at the babies. They had been with them all afternoon and they were now sleeping peacefully in their bassinettes.

"They're in good hands Ash," said Beaver as he rubbed Ashleigh's shoulder noticing she had tensed up a little bit when she saw them.

"I know," Ashleigh replied. "It's just weird leaving them."

"We'll be back tomorrow as soon as we wake up," said Beaver.

"That's if we even get any sleep," said Ashleigh with a sigh.

Beaver just rubbed her shoulder again as he pushed the wheelchair out of the labor and delivery wing. They got into the elevator and made their way out to the car. Beaver helped Ashleigh into the car and took the wheelchair back into the hospital. He then came back out and got into the car. The ride home was completely silent. He could tell Ashleigh was distraught as she looked out the window the entire time. It was lightly raining out so the only sound was the raindrops that hit the windshield as they drove.

When they arrived home Beaver unloaded the car as Ashleigh went inside. He organized the balloons and many vases of flowers they got on the kitchen table and put her overnight bag in their room. He expected to see her in there getting ready for bed but she wasn't. He looked in the bathroom and didn't find her there either. He then went into the nursery and found Ashleigh sitting in one of the rocking chairs with tears streaming down her face.

"This isn't how it was supposed to happen," she said looking up at him as he entered the room.

Beaver went over and sat on the ottoman in front of her. She leaned her head on his shoulder as he wrapped his arms around her.

"I dreamed almost every day about our first night home with the babies," she said softly through her tears. "We put them in their cribs and watched them sleep for a while before we finally talked ourselves into going to bed. And then Matt started crying at one in the morning and Maddy followed in the same fashion. We got up and fed them or changed their diapers or do whatever they needed until we rocked them back to sleep. We didn't get much sleep in my dreams but it didn't matter because we were happy and our babies were safe and at home. But now, now that's not ha—happing."

"Shhhhhh," said Beaver as he rubbed his hand up and down her back.

"How could we just leave them there Beav?" asked Ashleigh. "What if they need us?"

At this point Ashleigh lost control and began sobbing and all Beaver could do was squeeze her tighter. He didn't know what to say because he felt the exact same way. And someone in this relationship needed to be the stronger one to hold them both together right now. A tear escaped Beaver's eye and he quickly wiped it away with his hand before Ashleigh noticed it. He knew it was his job as a husband to step up and be the stronger one but he just wasn't sure if he was going to be able to do it.

* * *

_**A/N: So no Cappie and Casey interaction in this chapter but no worries, they'll be back next chapter! Hope you guys liked Calvin and Heath's speeches and over the next several chapters you'll get to read each character's speech which I'm excited to write about :0) Hopefully tomorrow's episode will be a good one. As long as they keep Cappie and Casey happy we'll all be happy right? LoL! Keep the reviews coming guys...getting close to 1000 which is CRAZY! But I love reading each and every one of them so keep them coming.**_


	148. Stepping Stones

STEPPING STONES

Another week and a half had passed and Casey was starting to grow impatient being in the hospital so long. Cappie helped break up the monotony by bringing Cadence by every day and spending the night with her but she could tell things were starting to wear on him too.

"Cap, you look like you haven't slept in days," said Casey looking over at him as he laid on the portable bed the nurse brought him. "Why don't you just go home and relax for the rest of the day. You could even stay the night there if you want."

"Are you sure?" Cappie asked as he sat up on the bed. "Because I told you I would be right here with you and I want to stay true to my promise."

"I know," Casey replied. "But I want you to make sure you're taking care of yourself. When is the last time you've taken a shower?"

"Yesterday," Cappie replied as he lifted up his arms to smell his pits. "Why? Do I smell?" he asked.

"No, you just look like you're tired and worn out that's all."

"Maybe I am getting a little overwhelmed right now," Cappie said as he stood up and stretched his arms and legs. "I just wish something would happen. I know the baby isn't due for another couple of weeks but at this point I wouldn't mind if he came a little earlier."

"See, I told you," said Casey crossing her arms in front of her. "I knew you would resent me for having to be here like this."

"Who said anything about resenting you?" Cappie asked as he walked over to Casey's bed. "You asked if I was OK and I told you the truth that I'm not. You want me to lie to you?"

"No, of course not," Casey replied. "I just wish you would go and take some time for yourself and not worry about me for a little bit. I'll be fine."

"I would really like to get home and check up on my e-mail and some work stuff," said Cappie. "But—"

"Then go," Casey interrupted. "I'll call you if anything changes."

"I just—"

"Cap, seriously," Casey interrupted again as she rolled her eyes at him. "Go."

"OK," he said with a deep breath as he went over and began to pack up a few of his things.

He was just about finished when there was a knock on the door.

"Look who decided to join us!" exclaimed Rebecca as she walked in pulling Evan behind her.

"Hey man!" said Cappie as he walked over and gave Evan a high five and a hug. "I feel like I haven't seen you in forever."

"I know, it's been way too long," Evan replied. "Things have just been so busy with work but I was able to pull a few strings and get some time off next week so here I am."

"Case, how are you feeling?" Rebecca asked as she walked over and sat on the edge of Casey's bed.

"I'm starting to go just a little crazy," said Casey with a small laugh. "But overall I'm hanging in there."

"Have you been out of bed at all?" Evan asked as he sat in one of the chairs by Casey's bed.

"See that portable toilet over there?" Casey said as she pointed to the other side of the room. "The nurse sets that right beside the bed here and I stand up enough to take like two steps to it and that's it."

"Ew, that has to be totally uncomfortable to use that unsightly thing," said Rebecca as she shuddered a little bit.

"It certainly is," said Casey. "But when it's my only excuse to get out of this bed I'll take what I can get."

"So Cap, how are things going with the restaurants?" Evan asked changing the subject away from Casey's bodily functions.

"Business is steady," Cappie replied as he sat in the chair next to Evan. "Right now Beaver and I are so concerned with the babies that we really haven't been there a whole lot. He and Ashleigh have been up here every day visiting the babies."

"Have you heard at all when the babies might be able to go home?" Evan asked.

"Ash said they were hopeful that they could in the next couple of days but that's just a guess at this point," Casey replied. "I think not having the babies at home right away has kind of thrown a curveball at the two of them that they weren't expecting. They're doing better now but it was really hard on them at first."

"Yeah, leaving the hospital without your baby must suck," said Evan as he crossed one of his legs over the other. "I hope I never have to go through that."

"Speaking of that," said Casey looking at both Evan and Rebecca. "What's going on with you two? Any baby making plans at all?"

"I don't know, when are you two going to have your next baby?" Evan asked in a jokingly tone.

"Hey, no turning the question around on me here," Casey joked back.

"Well asking us when we are going to have our first baby is the same as people asking you when you're going to have your third," Evan replied. "It's just something that you don't know and it'll happen when it happens."

"I don't know about that," said Casey rubbing her stomach. "With all the blood pressure and bed rest craziness I've gone through with this pregnancy I think I'm done. No more babies for me."

There was kind of an eerie silence in the room after Casey said that. Rebecca and Evan both turned to Cappie expecting him to add something to the conversation but he just looked at the ground and avoided eye contact with all of them.

"Anyway, back to the original question," said Casey breaking the silence and taking the attention off of her and Cappie. "Have you two thought anymore about having kids?"

"We actually have," Rebecca replied. "But we're just taking it one day at a time. As Evan said, it'll happen when it happens."

"So are you guys like, you know, trying?" Casey asked with a wink.

"Alright, new subject," said Rebecca rather loudly.

Everyone in the room let out small laughs, except Cappie.

"Actually I haven't eaten anything since breakfast," said Evan. "You guys want to go and grab something to eat?"

"Sorry Ev, I'm kind of stuck here," said Casey with a grin.

"Oh yeah," Evan replied in an embarrassed tone.

"Cap, you could come with us if you want," said Rebecca stepping into the conversation. "I saw a few restaurants down the street so we don't have to go far if you don't want to."

"No, you guys go ahead," said Cappie.

"Yeah, right before you walked in I was actually telling Cap to just go home and relax for the night," said Casey. "I think he should just do that."

"Are you sure?" Evan asked. "I'll even pay."

"It's tempting," Cappie joked. "But I think I'd rather just go home and get some things done. Thanks for the offer though."

"OK," Rebecca replied. "Case, do you want us to bring you anything back?"

"Actually a milkshake sounds really good," Casey replied. "I would love a chocolate one from McDonalds if you could grab it on your way back."

"Not a problem," said Evan as he helped Rebecca put her jacket on.

"We'll be back in a little bit," said Rebecca as the two of them left the room.

Cappie continued to pack the rest of his things up. He put his bag around his shoulder and walked over to Casey's bed.

"You sure you'll be OK without me?" he asked.

"I'll be fine," Casey replied. "Call me later."

"I will," Cappie replied as he leaned down and gave her a kiss on the lips.

Cappie adjusted his bag and began to slowly walk towards the door. He put his hand on the knob but turned around and looked back at Casey before opening the door.

"Case?" he asked.

Casey looked up at him.

"Do you seriously not want any more kids?" Cappie asked.

Casey was a little shocked by his question but she could see in his eyes that her response to the question earlier affected him.

"Can we just concentrate on this one before we go looking into the future?" Casey asked.

"Yeah, sure," said Cappie with a small pause as he finally opened the door.

"I love you," said Casey as he walked out.

"Love you too," Cappie replied as he shut the door.

Casey stared at the door for a few minutes after Cappie left wondering why her comment about maybe not having more kids really affected Cappie. For the time being she was concerned with the baby she was having right now and hoped Cappie would come around and realize that too.

* * *

Ashleigh sat in the nursery holding Maddison tightly in her arms. She had just got done feeding her and the nurses were very excited the baby ate as much as she did. She and Beaver have been at the nursery from eight in the morning until seven at night since Ashleigh was discharged home. She actually kind of liked Casey being at the hospital at the same time because she was able to talk and catch up with her while the babies slept.

Ashleigh watched Beaver walk around the nursery rocking Matthew back and forth in his arms. He has remained surprisingly strong over the past week and she was really proud of him for it. Having the babies in the hospital for a little bit has really been more of a blessing than they thought. The nurses really educated them on diaper changes, bottle feedings, burping and anything else related to caring for the babies.

"How much did Maddy eat?" Beaver asked interrupting Ashleigh from her thoughts as he sat down next to her.

"She had almost the entire bottle," Ashleigh replied. "I can't believe how well she is doing compared to when she was born."

"Hey, she's a Thompson," said Beaver with a smile. "So you know she's a fighter."

Ashleigh just smiled back at Beaver and then looked down at Maddison.

"So do you think you're ready to handle them at home now?" Ashleigh asked.

"I'm not sure I'll ever be ready," Beaver replied. "But I feel much more prepared than I was. At least I can change a diaper now."

"It only takes you fifteen minutes," said Ashleigh with a small laugh.

"It may take me while but at least it's perfect when I'm done," said Beaver defending himself.

Ashleigh was about to continue the conversation when she and Beaver both noticed the doctor walking over to them.

"How is everything today?" he asked.

"Everything is fine," Beaver replied. "Just waiting anxiously for you to tell us it's time to take these babies home."

"Well that is why I can over here," said the doctor with a smile.

Beaver and Ashleigh looked at each other and then quickly back to the doctor, their expressions full of hope.

"Little Matthew's heart rate has been normal for a few days now and the nurses said he is feeding very well," the doctor continued. "So I'm going to go ahead and fill out his discharge papers and you guys can take him home tomorrow."

"Really?" asked Ashleigh in shock, she had no idea the babies would be coming home so soon.

"Wait, what about Maddison?" Beaver asked.

"Maddison still isn't eating as much as we would like her to so she's still going to have to be on the IV nutrition for another few days," the doctor replied.

"So we can't take her home too?" Ashleigh asked.

"I'm afraid not," the doctor replied. "But I don't anticipate her being here any longer than another week. She'll be home sooner than you think."

"Well thanks doc," said Beaver. "We're glad you gave us at least some good news."

"You're welcome," the doctor replied. "I'll be here in the morning and sign the discharge papers then so you're free to take him home anytime after that."

"Will do," Beaver replied.

"Let me know if you have any other questions," said the doctor before he turned around and left.

"Did you hear that buddy?" Beaver said as he looked down at Matthew. "You get to go home tomorrow!"

Matthew let out a little coo.

"I think he's happy," said Beaver with a laugh as he turned to Ashleigh.

But Ashleigh wasn't laughing too.

"What's wrong?" Beaver asked.

"This sucks," she said in an angry tone. "How can we take one of them home and not the other? Are twins even allowed to be separated like that?"

"Ash, you're sounding kind of ridiculous," said Beaver. "There is nothing wrong with bringing one home and not the other. And you heard the doctor; he said Maddy won't be here much longer."

"I know but it just doesn't seem fair," Ashleigh replied.

"Ash, I don't think there is ever a time in anyone's life when everything is fair," said Beaver. "Life is full of stepping stones and taking Matt home is just one of those steps. And before you know it we'll take another one with bringing Maddy home."

"Since when did you get all philosophical on me?" Ashleigh asked, a small grin forming on her face.

"When it caused you to get that slight grin on your face," Beaver replied as he poked his finger at Ashleigh's nose.

Ashleigh's grin now turned into a full smile.

"I guess you're right," she said with a deep breath. "And maybe it will be the best for us to have just one baby home for a while. That way we can get more practice."

"Exactly," Beaver replied as he stood up and set Matthew in his bassinette. He then took Maddison out of Ashleigh's arms and put her in hers. He took Ashleigh's hands and pulled her to stand up in front of him. "I love you," he said as he leaned down and kissed her lips softly. "And everything is going to be just fine. I promise."

"I love you too," Ashleigh replied. "And thanks."

"Thanks for what?" Beaver asked as he let go of her arms and wrapped his arms around her waist.

"Thanks for being you," she said with a smile as she leaned in and kissed him again.

* * *

Cappie rolled around in the bed trying to get comfortable. He had a hard time sleeping all night even though he went to bed earlier than he had planned. His mom had dinner ready when he got home so the three of them sat around and ate and he then pretty much spent the rest of the evening spending time with Cadence. He knew he hadn't seen her as much as he should over the past week with Casey being in the hospital and he could tell with as much as she had latched onto him last night.

He turned and looked at the clock and saw that it was five in the morning. He wasn't sure why he hadn't been able to sleep. Usually he falls asleep right away in his bed. Maybe it was because Casey wasn't there. Maybe it was because he was worried about the new baby. Or maybe the comment Casey made about not having any more kids bothered him. He knew he shouldn't be thinking about it. It was stupid to think about having more kids when the current one hasn't even been born yet. But it was just something in the way she seemed pretty adamant that she wasn't going to have any more kids. Of course he wasn't sure if he wanted to have any more either but it just sounded like there was no possibility in Casey's remark and that kind of upset him.

Finally Cappie sat up in bed and figured he might as well get up now. Since he spent time with Cadence last night he didn't get any of the things for work done he wanted to do last night. So he made his way downstairs to the family room where the computer was now since the room the computer used to be in is the new baby's room now. He grabbed a juice out of the refrigerator and waited patiently as the computer booted up. He first went to his e-mail to find his mailbox almost completely full.

"What the heck?" he mumbled to himself as he looked at all of the new messages.

He then quickly realized that a lot of them were videos from various alums for his project to help save the Greek system. Seeing all the support made him smile. He was glad that so many people supported the project and he could tell that what he was doing was really going to make an impact on the executive board. In the middle of all of the e-mails he noticed one was from Dale, which he thought was strange so he opened it first.

_Hey Cap,  
Rusty told me about the Greek system being in trouble and what you were doing to help save it. I decided I wanted to add my contribution even though I wasn't a member of the Greek system. You don't have to use it if you don't want to but I thought I would send it your way in case you did. I hope all is well with you. Tell Casey I said hello.  
Support Command,  
Dale_

Cappie downloaded the video Dale had attached to the e-mail and began to watch it.

"Hello fellow CRU alumnae. My name is Dale Kettlewell and I would like to tell you why you shouldn't get rid of the Greek system," he began. "I think my testimony here should be the most important one out of all the rest because I'm not actually a part of the Greek system."

Cappie let out a small laugh. Leave it to Dale to make sure everyone knows he is better than everyone else.

"I actually despised the Greek system my freshman year," he watched Dale continue. "I created the student organization USAG which stands for University Students Against Greeks because at that time I thought the Greek system is exactly what you guys are thinking it is now; full of crazy parties and drunken madness. But when my freshman year roommate Rusty joined a fraternity I was able to really see what the Greek system was all about. Sure his brothers would come barging in our room at all hours of the night to kidnap him but it was all in fun. The only thing I would question was the time they didn't allow Rusty to shower or change his clothes for a week. Our entire room smelled like feet, stale beer and rotten cheese and that was when Rusty WASN'T there. That smell was a million times worse when he was."

Cappie had to pause the video while he laughed again. He thought back to the days of Hell Week and the many ridiculous things they made the pledges do. After he stopped laughing he pushed play again on the video.

"I can attest first hand to what the Greek system did for Rusty. He became confident and a whole new person because of joining Kappa Tau. At one point I actually got jealous. He had it all; girlfriends, friends, brothers and a solid academic career. Without joining Kappa Tau he would have been just like me and focused just on academics. The Kappa Taus are a really decent group and they really accepted Rusty even though he was a 'nerd' by standards. I didn't think he stood a chance but seeing him grow more confident socially really changed my mind. But my knowledge of the Greek system goes way beyond my freshman year roommate. At the end of my sophomore year I actually became the hasher for the Zeta Beta Zeta house. And while some of those girls had questionable motives at times, they were all respectable and it was a pleasure working for them. The ZBZs also have some very lovely ladies. My first love was actually a ZBZ; Casey Cartwright."

Cappie rolled his eyes. Was Dale really going to go there?

"The girls were helping out my church youth group for some philanthropy hours and that is when I met her for the first time. I couldn't believe my roommate Rusty, who is her brother, hadn't introduced me to her before. We had a great time working together and the ZBZs put on a really good show to help out the at risk youth in the group. But unfortunately I learned that my Casey Cartwright only has eyes for one man who is also my friend Cappie. Those two are now off and married in wedded bliss but you never get over your first love. She'll always hold a special place in my heart."

Cappie watched Dale pat his chest with his hand where his heart was and let out a small laugh. He thought it was funny to this day Dale is still hung up on Casey. And it also made him feel good, knowing he got the girl other men can only dream about.

"And then there was Laura," Dale continued. "She is also a ZBZ and my first real college girlfriend. Well, I guess we never really labeled ourselves as boyfriend and girlfriend but we had a relationship and it gave me yet another connection to the Greek system. Come to think about it, most of my friends are in the Greek system. Rusty and Cappie are Kappa Taus and Calvin is an Omega Chi. I saw how much they all loved the Greek system and really I think everyone on campus didn't have a problem with them either. The highest total members I ever had for USAG was 25 and some of them were names of people I made up just to show the University that students were actually interested. They are truly a force to be reckoned with and I wouldn't go there if I was you. I don't think I have to remind you but I will anyway that a lot of the donor money that comes to the University is from Greek alumnae. If you get rid of the Greek system you're going to lose a lot of donations to the school because they'll be unhappy and I don't think you would like that a whole lot at this point. Overall the Greeks aren't a bad group and I think that statement holds a lot coming from someone who despised them as much as I did when I first started college. But some of my good friends are Greek and they are some of the most honest and genuine people that you will ever meet."

The video stopped and Cappie closed out of it. He couldn't believe Dale would send a video in support of the Greek system but after watching it he could see how the Greek system had affected him indirectly. With as many friends as Dale had in the Greek system he should have been made an honorary Greek himself. It was really nice of him to do this and a message from a non-Greek will look really good mixed in with the rest of the videos.

Cappie scrolled through the other e-mails looking for anyone else who stood out to him. He saw an e-mail from Wade and clicked on it. But before he started to play the video his cell phone rang next to him.

"Hello," he answered it not recognizing the number.

"Cap, the doctor's said it's time," said Casey in a frantic voice. "I need you here."

"I'm on my way," said Cappie as he quickly stood up and ran upstairs to get ready as fast as he could.

* * *

_**A/N: OK, so who else wanted to just hug Dale at the end of the episode last night? I felt so bad for him. I even thought the Omega Chis were actually rushing him but guess not. Poor Dale. Oh and the dance thing was too funny, especially when Calvin and Rusty joined him on stage LoL! But other than that I wasn't too much of a fan of the episode. Anyone else think Evan was more truthful than Casey thought when he was talking to her about their relationship? But she gave it to him which was nice. Bet you like that Hans LoL! And not enough Cappie and Casey interaction in the episode either...hehe. Hopefully we'll get more next episode.**_

_**Anyway, hope you guys liked this chapter. Can't believe this story has over 1000 reviews now! Thanks so much for reading and for the support. Keep it coming!**_


	149. In a Little While

IN A LITTLE WHILE

Cappie had never changed his clothes faster in his life. He was pulling into the hospital parking lot no more than fifteen minutes after Casey had called. Of course the one day he goes home and leaves her, the baby decides he wants to come. Cappie parked the car and instead of waiting for the elevator he ran up the stairs to the third floor as fast as he could. The nurse asked to see his wristband and she unlocked the doors quickly as soon as he showed it to her. He ran into Casey's room gasping for his breath.

"I made it," he said barely audible as he walked into the room.

There were a couple of nurses in the room hooking Casey up to some IVs. He walked over to the bed and looked Casey in the eyes. She looked worried which caused him to panic also.

"What is going on?" he asked.

"My blood pressure is starting to go up," said Casey. "The doctor said we don't have any choice now but the induce labor."

"Induce? What in the hell does that mean?" Cappie asked as he looked at the nurse to explain it to him.

"I'm hooking her up to some medicine now that is going to start labor," said the nurse.

"Wait, so you're not even in labor right now?" Cappie asked. "No contractions or anything?"

"No, but the doctor said that if we didn't start the labor now and my blood pressure got any higher, the baby and myself would be at serious risk," Casey replied.

"Whoa, I don't know about this," said Cappie looking at the nurse. "This is like fake labor."

"We give this medicine to women all of the time," the nurse replied. "The doctor knows what he is doing. Trust me."

"Shouldn't we call Dr. Snyder or something?" Cappie asked. "She knows my wife's condition more than anyone. I really think she should be called."

"Cap, calm down," said Casey as she took his hand and squeezed it.

"No, what if the baby isn't ready yet?" Cappie asked. "I really think Dr. Snyder should be called."

"We have paged her," the nurse replied. "She said she would be here in a little while."

"So we should probably hold off on this until she comes in then right?" Cappie asked.

"Cap, please," pleaded Casey. "I talked with the doctor a little while ago and he knows what he is talking about. We don't want to put either of our lives at risk do we?"

"Of course not," Cappie replied.

"Then let the nurse do her job and just calm down please," said Casey as she squeezed his hand.

Cappie slowly admitted defeat and sat down in the chair next to Casey's bed. They watched as the nurse finished up hooking Casey up to the medicine and then left the room.

"What happened Case?" Cappie asked after the nurse left. "I thought everything was going OK."

"I thought it was too," Casey replied. "But then this stupid thing took my blood pressure around two in the morning and the nurses came running in and woke me up saying that it was too high. So they gave me another dose of the blood pressure medicine and called the doctor on call. The medicine seemed to work and bring it back down. But then around five my blood pressure went back up again and it was too soon to give me another dose of the medicine. They were finally able to give me another dose a little while ago but this time it didn't work as well."

"It didn't work?" Cappie asked in a shocked voice.

"Yeah, the doctor explained that sometimes the body just gets used to it and it gets to a point when it doesn't work as well anymore," Casey replied.

"Well can't they just give you a different one?" Cappie asked. "They've got to make more than one medicine out there."

"Nothing that is going to be safe for the baby," Casey replied. "So that's when the doctor made the decision to induce labor. He said the sooner the baby comes out the safer everyone will be at this point."

"And he's sure everything is going to be OK?" Cappie asked. "I know I said yesterday I wanted the baby to come out soon but I wasn't expecting this soon. Especially if he's not developed enough or ready to come out."

"I'll be at thirty seven weeks tomorrow," Casey replied. "The doctor said the only thing he would be concerned with is lung development but he said that shouldn't be a problem."

"I would hate to think that his lungs aren't developed enough yet to be delivered," said Cappie. "This is kind of scary Case."

"I know," Casey sighed. "But at the same time look at Ashleigh's babies. They were born almost a month and a half early and they are fine and breathing on their own."

"And also have been in the hospital since being born," Cappie added. "I'd like to take the baby home when I take you home."

"Of course you would but we're talking about a bunch of stuff right now that we don't even know," said Casey. "Who knows how long I'll actually be in labor and when this medicine is really going to work. It's just a waiting game at this point."

"Yay, more waiting," Cappie sighed. "I guess I'll just feel better once Dr. Snyder gets here. I have a lot of trust in her."

"I agree," said Casey.

The two of them sat in silence for the next half an hour watching the monitors closely and listening to the baby's heart rate. Eventually Dr. Snyder broke the silence by entering the room.

"What's going on Casey?" she asked as she opened her chart to look at it.

"The doctor on call said we needed to start labor," said Casey. "I guess my blood pressure is getting to be too high."

"Well, I agree," said Dr. Snyder still looking at the chart. "Your numbers are too high."

"What does this mean?" Cappie asked. "Is the baby even developed enough to be delivered right now?"

"The baby should be just fine," Dr. Snyder replied. "There are babies that are able to survive born as early as twenty eight weeks. Your baby is very close to thirty seven weeks."

"OK," said Cappie with a deep breath. "That makes me feel a little better."

"It looks like you've been started on the medicine," said Dr. Snyder as she looked at the IV hooked up to Casey's arm.

"How long before this medicine takes effect?" Casey asked.

"I would say anywhere from an hour to four or five hours from now," Dr. Snyder replied. "I'm going to be here at the hospital all day checking up on you. The nurses will let me know as soon as something happens or changes."

"So you agree with everything that is being done right now?" Cappie asked.

"Complete agreement," Dr. Snyder replied. "It's going to be safer for baby and mom to start labor and deliver the baby sooner than later."

"Alright, thanks doctor," said Cappie.

The two of them watched as Dr. Snyder walked out of the room and a nurse come in at the same time bringing Casey her breakfast.

"I don't know how hungry you are right now," said the nurse setting the tray on Casey's table. "But it's probably good to try and get some food in your stomach because you could have a long day ahead of you."

"Thanks," said Casey as the nurse left the room.

"If you don't mind I'm going to go down to the cafeteria and grab a coffee and something to eat," said Cappie standing up. "I rushed out of the house so quickly I didn't even think of getting something to eat."

"That's fine," Casey replied as she took a bite of her toast.

Cappie leaned down and kissed Casey on the forehead before he left the room. As he was walking out he ran into Ashleigh and Beaver with smiles on their faces.

"Hey Cap!" said Ashleigh. "You're up early today."

"Casey had some problems this morning," he replied. "They just started her on some medicine to induce labor."

"Oh my gosh," said Ashleigh. "Is she alright?"

"She's fine," Cappie replied. "She's eating some breakfast before things start to pick up. I was just about to go to the cafeteria and get something to eat myself. Do you guys want to join me?"

"Actually we just got word that the doctor signed Matthew's discharge papers," said Beaver. "We were going to take him home."

"Oh, well, you guys go ahead," said Cappie. "That's exciting."

"Yeah, but maybe we should hold off since Casey is going into labor," said Ashleigh.

"No, you guys go ahead and take him home," said Cappie. "Casey hasn't even had any contractions yet. It's probably going to be a while and he really should be home and not here in the hospital anymore."

"Promise me you will call and keep us updated?" Ashleigh asked. "Casey made it a point to be here when I was in labor and I want to make sure I do the same for her."

"I'll definitely keep you posted," said Cappie. "Now go and take your little man home."

"OK," said Ashleigh eagerly with a smile.

Beaver and Ashleigh stood and watched Cappie walk out of the labor and delivery wing before they went into the nursery.

"He is more than ready to go home," said the nurse as they reached the babies. "I just got done feeding him and changing his diaper."

"Excellent," said Ashleigh. "Check out this cute snow outfit I got to bring him home in."

"Very cute," the nurse replied as she looked at the very small blue snow suit and bubble jacket Ashleigh held up to her.

"And I have a pink one for when it's time for Maddy to go home in too," she said as she began to put the outfit on Matthew.

Beaver went over and picked Maddison up out of her bassinette.

"Don't worry baby," he said kissing her on the cheek. "You'll get to come home with mommy and daddy and your brother very soon. And we'll be back later today to spend some time with you."

"You weren't planning on bringing Matthew back were you?" the nurse asked as she helped Ashleigh get him into his outfit.

"Well sure," Beaver replied. "Something wrong with that?"

"Actually with the cold weather and Matthew being a preemie it's best to keep him indoors as much as possible," the nurse replied. "He's more likely to get a cold or pneumonia the more you bring him in and out of the cold weather. Plus with all the germs and sickness here in the hospital I wouldn't bring him back here too often either."

"Oh, well, I guess one of us will just stay home with him or we'll have to get someone to watch him while we come and visit then," said Beaver.

"That's probably the best idea," the nurse replied. "And it won't be for long. Maddy is starting to eat more and more each day. I don't see her being here too much longer."

"That's what we keep hoping for," said Ashleigh as she put a hat on Matthew.

Beaver kissed Maddison and handed her to Ashleigh who also kissed her before putting her back in her bassinette. He then picked up Matthew and put him in the carrier they brought to take him home in.

"Well, this is it," he said with a deep breath as he locked the straps around Matthew.

"You guys can call up here if you have any problems," said the nurse. "But I'm sure you guys will be fine."

"Thanks," said Ashleigh. "I guess we'll see you later."

With that Beaver picked up the carrier and Ashleigh followed him out of the nursery.

"Hey I'm going to go and check in on Casey really quick," said Ashleigh. "I'll meet you outside."

"Alright," Beaver replied as he watched Ashleigh go into Casey's room.

Beaver took his time going to the elevator and made sure to look down several times at Matthew to make sure he was OK.

"Awww, such a cute baby," said a woman as Beaver got in the elevator.

"Thanks," Beaver replied with a smile. He was beginning to feel more and more like a proud daddy.

He waited in the lobby for a few minutes as he turned on the remote car starter. He wanted to make sure the car was nice and warm before putting the baby into it. Once he was sure it was warm he hurriedly walked out to the car and opened the back door. Luckily Ashleigh had shown him how to put the seat in the car before they left so he didn't have any problem. He then got into the driver's seat and turned to look back at Matthew. He was being so quiet which was making Beaver a little uneasy but he knew everything was OK. Beaver pulled the car around to the entrance and waited several more minutes for Ashleigh to come out.

"Sorry that took me so long," she said getting into the backseat of the car. "Casey started crying because she was scared and then I started crying and we were both a mess for a minute there."

"Everything alright now?" Beaver asked.

"Yeah, she assured me Cappie would be back soon to be with her," Ashleigh replied. "And I told her I would see her later today."

"That's good," said Beaver as he put the car in drive and began to pull out of the parking lot.

He made extra sure to take each turn slowly and to not stop suddenly. He obeyed all speed limits and probably drove under the speed limit most of the way home. He pulled the car into the garage about twenty minutes later and breathed a sigh of relief that they had made it home OK.

Ashleigh brought Matthew inside and began to take his winter clothes off. After she did that her and Beaver found themselves sitting on the couch in the living room with Matthew lying between the two of them. He wasn't asleep but just looking up at both of his parents and around the room with squinted eyes.

"So, what do we do now?" Beaver asked with a nervous laugh.

"I'm not sure there is anything to do," Ashleigh replied. "He seems pretty happy and content right now."

The two of them looked at each other awkwardly and both let out nervous laughs this time. For something they were waiting so long for they were surprised at how uneventful things were at the moment.

"Let's, uh, watch some TV then," said Beaver as he reached for the remote and turned it on.

The two of them sat with the television on for the next half an hour but they really didn't watch it. They were too busy looking at Matthew, making sure everything was fine with them. He eventually started to become cranky and the two of them sprung into action.

"OK, OK, here we go," said Beaver as if he was ready to call the next play in the football huddle.

"How about I start a bottle while you change his diaper?" Ashleigh asked.

"Great plan," said Beaver as he got up to get the supplies he needed to change the diaper.

Beaver spread out the changing pad on the couch and placed Matthew on it. He was now crying.

"It's OK, It's OK," Beaver said trying to calm him down. "I'm going to change your diaper and make you feel all better."

The baby continued to wail as Beaver took his diaper off and placed the new one underneath of him.

"Hey Beave, do you remember how many scoops of this formula I'm supposed to use?" Ashleigh asked from the kitchen.

"I think it's just one scoop," Beaver replied as he turned to look at Ashleigh. "But it should say on the container itself."

"Yeah I think—"

"HOLY CRAP!" Beaver yelled interrupting Ashleigh. "YOU'VE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME!"

Ashleigh came running over to the couch to see what was wrong and instantly couldn't contain herself from laughing. Matthew was in the process of peeing all over Beaver and the couch. By the time Beaver tried to put the diaper up to shield the spraying mess he had finished.

"Oh man, it's all over the place!" said Beaver as he took some of the baby wipes and wiped off his arm and the couch.

Ashleigh continued to laugh next to him, tears now streaming down her face.

"I'm glad you find this so funny," said Beaver as he put a new diaper on the baby.

"I'm sorry," said Ashleigh wiping her eyes. "But walking over and seeing him peeing all over you and the couch was probably the funniest thing I have seen in years."

"His diaper was soaked, I don't understand how he even had anymore in him," said Beaver in a frustrated tone as he snapped the onesie back around the baby.

Beaver sighed and leaned back against the couch once he was finished. Ashleigh sat on the coffee table across from him and just stared at him. She was really surprised he didn't find this as funny as she did.

"What?" Beaver finally asked.

"Come on, you have to laugh about that," she said with a smile. "It was funny."

Beaver was able to stay as still as a rock for a few more seconds until he couldn't hold it in anymore and began laughing himself.

"I can't believe the first diaper I change at home," he said through his laughs. "And he pees all over me. It's like he had to give me a welcome home present."

"Hey, something is better than nothing right?" Ashleigh asked as she was now laughing again too.

"I guess," said Beaver as he pulled Ashleigh into his lap and wrapped his arms around her. "We're going to have fun doing this aren't we?"

"Yeah, we're going to be just fine," Ashleigh replied as she kissed Beaver and they both looked over at Matthew who was no longer crying as he lay next to them.

* * *

"MOMMY!" exclaimed Cadence as Cappie carried her into Casey's hospital room.

"Well hello my little princess," said Casey as Cappie set Cadence on the edge of Casey's bed.

"I made some phone calls while I was in the cafeteria," said Cappie as he sat down in a chair. "Your parents are on their way and mom brought Cadence up to join us."

"Are you sure she's going to be alright?" Casey asked. "It could be a while."

"Mommy, I'll be O-K!" Cadence replied answering for Cappie and giving Casey a thumbs up.

"You heard the girl," said Cappie with a laugh. "She'll be just fine."

Cadence reached her hand up and rubbed Casey's stomach.

"When baby born?" she asked.

"In a little while," Casey replied. "We're just waiting until he's ready."

"Still haven't felt anything yet?" Cappie asked.

"No," Casey said with a sigh. "I thought for sure this medicine would just start things quickly and I'd already be having contractions now but I guess no such luck. My heart racing from nervousness is the only thing reminding me that I'm in labor at the moment."

"Ma-ma, is baby going to like me?" Cadence asked looking innocently at Casey with her large light blue eyes.

"Of course he is," Casey replied as she brushed the side of Cadence's cheek. "You're going to be a great big sister and he's going to love you very much."

"I love him too," said Cadence as she rested her head down on Casey's stomach and gave it a hug.

"Awwww," Casey said as she looked at Cappie and smiled.

"We are going to be one happy family once the baby gets here," said Cappie as he reached up and squeezed Casey's hand.

"Oh, did you call Rusty too?" Casey asked breaking the tender moment.

"Sure did," Cappie replied. "He and Jordan are working on getting on the next flight here."

"Jordan's coming too?" Casey asked excitedly.

"Yeah, she said she wouldn't miss it for the world," Cappie replied.

"HEY!" Cadence exclaimed as she sat back up. "The baby hit me!"

"No, no, he didn't hit you," said Casey with a small laugh. "When the baby gets excited he likes to kick his feet so that is what you felt."

"He kicked me?" Cadence asked.

"Well, yeah, but in a nice way," Cappie replied.

"You used to do that too," Casey added.

"Na-uh!" said Cadence.

"It's true," Casey replied. "You moved all over the place. And you kicked all of the time, keeping me up many times at night I might add."

"I sowwy mommy," said Cadence as she got a solemn expression on her face.

"No need to be sorry," Casey replied. "You were just a happy baby. Just like you're a happy big girl now."

"Yay!" exclaimed Cadence as she clapped her hands together.

Cappie ran his hand playfully through Cadence's long brunette hair as she giggled away. He then picked her up and began to spin her around the room like an airplane.

"Uh oh! Looks like we're going to have to do a crash landing!" he playfully exclaimed. "Good thing there is a soft bed here to land on!"

Cadence giggled away as Cappie jerked her around like a plane experiencing turbulence and then plopped her back down on Casey's bed.

"You're silly daddy!" said Cadence as she gained her composure.

"Well it's a good thing mommy had a nice bed here to save you huh?" Cappie asked.

"Yeah," Cadence replied.

"I guess being on bed rest isn't such a bad thing right now huh Case?" Cappie asked.

But Casey didn't respond. She was staring towards the front of the room.

"Case?" Cappie asked.

Casey finally turned and looked at him. "Huh?" she asked.

"Is everything alright?" Cappie asked as he picked Cadence back up into his arms.

"I just don't feel so good all of a sudden," Casey replied as she rubbed her stomach. "I think the labor is really starting now."

* * *

_**A/N: Hello everyone! Hope you all had a good weekend. Yay for tomorrow being Monday! (I never thought I would say that until Greek started on Mondays LoL!) I hope it's a good episode but I'm so sad there are only two left :0( Let's hope they start wrapping a few things up in this episode instead of leaving everything for the finale. There is so much left up in the air right now: Evan/Cappie friendship? Evan/Rebecca relationship? Cappie/Casey and their future? Haven't heard anything from Calvin and Heath in a while. Who is trying to take down the KT house? Are Laura and Dale going to end up together? What's going to happen with Rusty and Ashleigh? Katherine and Beaver? There are just so many things that would be crazy to leave everything for the finale wouldn't it?**_

_**Ugh...Oh well, guess we'll just have to see what happens I guess. Anyway, hope you guys liked this new chapter! I'll certainly get another one posted in a few days for you guys. Please keep reviewing! They keep me motivated :0)**_


	150. Family Ties

FAMILY TIES

Several hours had passed and even though Casey was starting to feel like she was in labor, things were progressing a lot slower than she anticipated.

"I haven't had a contraction in like ten minutes," she grumbled as she turned to look at Cappie sitting in the chair next to her.

"Are they feeling any more intense?" Cappie asked.

"Not really," Casey replied with a sigh. "I thought the birth of your second baby was supposed to be easy."

"Now that's not always the case," said Dr. Snyder as she entered the room with a small laugh.

"So is that just some cruel rumor doctors tell their patients to get them to have more babies?" Casey asked with a wink.

"Something like that," said Dr. Snyder as she picked up Casey's chart. "Looks like your blood pressure is doing alright," she said in a more serious tone.

"Yeah, that's good," said Casey. "But I'm kind of worried that things aren't progressing faster."

"Can't you like double the dose of that medicine and speed things up?" Cappie asked, half joking but half serious.

"We've already given her the regular dose," Dr. Snyder replied. "You have to remember that these are artificial hormones. Some women just don't respond to them as well as others."

"So are we still just waiting until something progresses now?" Casey asked.

"Let me take a look and see if you're dilated at all," said Dr. Snyder putting her gloves on.

Casey got into position and Dr. Snyder checked how far along she was.

"One, maybe one and a half centimeters," she said taking her gloves off.

"Wonderful," Casey said with a sigh.

"I'm actually pleased," Dr. Snyder said writing a few notes in Casey's chart. "The fact that you're dilated just a little means that things are progressing."

"How come my water hasn't broke yet?" Casey asked.

"It probably will when it's ready," Dr. Snyder replied. "But if it doesn't I'll go ahead and break it once you're close to being fully dilated."

"Wow, that long?" Casey asked. "With Cadence it broke even before I had contractions."

"As I've told you many times before, every baby is different," Dr. Snyder replied as she put Casey's chart away.

"I know," said Casey. "It's just hard because I expect this labor to be like the last one but I know that it's not."

"I'll be back later to check on you again," said Dr. Snyder as she turned to leave the room. "Hang in there."

"Thanks doc," said Casey as she watched her walk out of the room.

"Well, I guess doubling the medicine is out of the question," said Cappie as he leaned back in his chair. "Looks like it's just more waiting."

"Why don't you go to the waiting room and spend some time with Cadence," said Casey looking at Cappie. "I know she's probably bored to death."

"I'm sure she's fine," Cappie replied. "I know my mom brought a lot of coloring books and toys for her to play with."

"Yeah, but what are we going to do if it's like midnight and I still haven't had the baby?" Casey asked.

"If the baby isn't born by her bedtime then I'll have mom take her back home," said Cappie. "I just want her to be here if she can. She's the third in line to hold the new baby after you and me you know. No one else until after she does."

"I didn't realize how important her being here was to you," said Casey giving Cappie an odd look.

"It's not to you?" Cappie asked.

"Yeah, I guess," Casey replied. "But she's only two and half. I'm not sure if she really quite understands what is going on."

"She's a smart girl," said Cappie. "Plus the new baby is going to be like her real life baby doll. I'm sure she'll be excited about that."

"You have a point there," said Casey with a smile.

Cappie stood up and gave Casey a soft kiss on the lips.

"Uh oh, did we interrupt something?" said a voice at the door.

They both turned to see Rusty and Jordan walk into the room hand in hand.

"Russ!" exclaimed Casey. "You guys got here quick!"

"I told you I would be on the first flight back here," said Rusty as he went over and gave Casey a hug.

"We were actually on standby," said Jordan. "But Rusty pleaded with the airline to let us on so he could get home to his sister who was about to have his first nephew."

"And I guess it worked," said Cappie with a laugh as he gave Jordan a hug.

"Sure did," said Rusty with a smile. "A nice couple offered to switch to a later flight so we could have their seats."

"Well I hate to tell you that you rushed here for nothing," said Casey. "The doctor gave me medicine to induce but nothing is really happening yet. Just a few contractions here and there."

"It's alright," said Jordan. "We both have a few days off so you can take your time."

"Believe me, I don't plan to," said Casey with a smile.

"How's the video coming along Cap?" Rusty asked.

"Great actually," Cappie replied. "I had about thirty people e-mail me videos when I checked this morning. And you're not going to believe this, even Dale made a video."

"Dale?" said Jordan and Casey in unison.

"Yeah," Cappie replied with a nod. "And his was actually really good. I'll definitely be adding it to the final project."

"Are you sure you're going to have enough time to get everything together with the baby coming and everything?" Rusty asked. "Because I could help with some editing and stuff if you want me to."

"I think I'll be alright," Cappie replied. "The board meeting isn't until the end of next week. If Casey has the baby within the next day or two that will give me plenty of time to edit while the baby is taking a nap or something."

"Alright," said Rusty. "But just know I am here to help if you need anything."

"I'll keep that in mind," Cappie replied. "And speaking of the video, do you two want to do yours now while we're waiting? I brought the camera with me."

"I don't know…." Rusty hesitated. "I haven't really thought about what I am going to say or anything."

"It's not something you can plan," said Cappie. "Most people are just talking to the camera with whatever comes to their heads. And I think it's better that way actually."

Rusty continued to hesitate.

"Why don't I go ahead and go first," said Jordan. "That way you'll have some time to think about it."

Cappie looked at Rusty and raised his eyebrows.

"OK, that sounds good," Rusty finally said.

"Great," said Cappie as he stood up and got the camera out of his bag. "You stay here with my lovely wife while I go and get Jordan set up."

"I can do that," said Rusty as he replaced Cappie in the chair next to Casey's bed.

"And please don't let her birth the baby while I'm gone," Cappie joked as he walked towards the door.

"I'll be sure to hold him in if that happens," said Rusty with a laugh.

"OK, ew," said Casey. "You two get out of here so Rusty can stop talking about things he shouldn't be talking about."

Cappie and Jordan both laughed as they left the room. There was a brief silence as Casey and Rusty looked at each other and smiled.

"So, baby number two," said Rusty continuing to smile at Casey. "Here we are again."

"I know, it's crazy isn't it?" Casey asked.

"Eh, not too crazy," Rusty replied. "I'll take as many nieces and nephews that you want to give me. They are fun to spoil."

"Cadence surely has you wrapped around her finger," said Casey.

"I think Cadence has everyone wrapped around her finger," said Rusty with a small laugh.

"Yeah, that's pretty true," said Casey. "Did you see her in the waiting room before you came here?"

"She didn't let me miss her," said Rusty. "As soon as I walked out of the elevator she ran right over and gave me a huge hug. I think she must have missed me or something."

"We all miss you," said Casey with a small sigh. "I wish you lived closer."

"I wish I did too," Rusty replied. "But I've still got a few classes to finish up for my PHD and unfortunately all the work with my wire is in Ohio. I don't think I'm ever going to be able to leave."

"I understand," said Casey. "But hopefully once you are done with classes you'll be able to visit a little more often or have some time for us to come and see you."

"You know you're always welcome," said Rusty. "And I'm always a phone call away no matter what."

"I guess it's kind of nice to have someone in the family back at CRU," said Casey. "That way we will always know what is going on."

"Yeah, like the complete shutdown of the Greek system," said Rusty with a sigh. "I still can't believe the university is even considering it. CRU would be nothing without the Greek system."

"And I think all of us would be nothing without the Greek system," added Casey.

"I don't think we would be nothing," said Rusty. "But our lives would certainly be different."

"Yeah, who knows if we would be sitting here talking if it wasn't for the Greek system," said Casey.

"You really don't think our relationship would be what it is today if I didn't rush Kappa Tau?" Rusty asked.

"It's hard to say one way or another," Casey replied. "But I like to think it did have something to do with it."

"Your turn," said Jordan as her and Cappie came back into the room.

"You're done already?" Rusty asked as he looked at his watch. "You weren't gone that long."

"It's not like your giving an hour long speech Russ," said Jordan as she walked over to him. "It's just talking about what the Greek system means to you, that's all."

"I haven't even had time to think about what I'm going to say yet though," said Rusty.

"Come on Russ," said Cappie who was still standing in the doorway. "I've still got the camera running so it's ready for you."

Rusty stood up and took a deep breath.

"Go get 'em Russ," said Casey playfully.

Rusty slowly walked past Cappie and out the door.

"Jordan, same thing applies to you," said Cappie as he walked out of the door. "She's not allowed to have the baby while I'm gone."

"You got it Cap," he heard Jordan say as he walked out of the room and caught up with Rusty.

"Cap, I don't know if I'm ready to do this," said Rusty as Cappie put his arm around him.

"Russ, stop being so nervous about this," said Cappie as they reached the double doors to the waiting room. "You'll do just fine."

"Russy!" exclaimed Cadence as she saw him and Cappie walk through the doors.

"Hello again my favorite little girl," said Rusty as he picked Cadence up in his arms. "What are you doing?"

"Tea party with mamaw," Cadence replied. "Wanna play?"

"Uncle Rusty can't right now," said Cappie as he took Cadence from Rusty. "He's got an important project he has to do."

"But why?" Cadence asked in a sad voice.

"How about I play as soon as I'm done," said Rusty looking into Cadence's big blue eyes.

"O-K!" said exclaimed as she wiggled out of Cappie's arms and ran back over to where she was playing with Cappie's mom.

"Right through here," said Cappie as he led Rusty to the conference room the other videos had been taped in.

Rusty sat in the chair in front of the camera.

"Just push record on the front of the camera and it should start," said Cappie.

"Wait, you're not staying in here with me?" Rusty asked.

"No, I found out quickly with Heath and Calvin that it's easier for people to do it on their own," said Cappie. "Just talk, everything will begin to come naturally once you start."

With those last words of wisdom Cappie walked out and shut the door behind him.

Rusty took a deep breath and reached forward to press the record button on the camera.

"Hello fellow alumnae," he began. "My name is Rusty Cartwright and I'm a Kappa Tau. Kappa Tau is an awesome fraternity with a great bunch of guys. You would be stupid idiots to let them go. Wait a second," he mumbled as he stood up and stopped the recording. "I'm not going to get anywhere insulting the executive board."

Rusty tried to calm down and relax a little bit while he went behind the camera and began to rewind it so he could tape over what he had just said. He went back a little further than he wanted to and saw Jordan in front of the camera. He then decided to rewind it to watch what she had said. Maybe it would give him some ideas. He pressed play and watched Jordan wave to the camera.

"Hi my name is Jordan Reed and I was a part of Zeta Beta Zeta. I'm really not your typical sorority girl. I've been a tom-boy most of my life. I started off at a community college and then transferred to CRU to get a different experience and I would have to say that the Greek system really gave me that different experience I was looking for. Even though I didn't fully pledge the sorority I can attest to the fact that they are a great group of girls with big hearts. They really tried to get me to stay because they really cared about me but also understood when I explained to them why I had to leave. The Greek system actually helped me with my current career though. I met a Kappa Tau brother named Heath through my fiancé Rusty. He ended up having some connections to a photographer in New York and I got an amazing internship. I can't help but think that if I didn't have that conversation with him that one day I may not be as successful as a photographer as I am now. The connections and support brothers and sisters give each other is a big part of the Greek system, whether you're an alumnae or not. It would be a shame to take those away from students going to CRU. The Greek system is a great program and I really hope your decide to keep it around."

Rusty stopped the tape after Jordan cut off the screen and sighed. Jordan's speech didn't really give him any ideas and he was kind of bummed she hadn't mentioned their relationship because at one time they were both Greek. He sat back down in the chair and collected his thoughts for a second. He then realized he was being silly about things. He and Jordan met through class, not really through the Greek system. But if he didn't talk about Jordan, what else could he talk about?

Another couple of minutes passed and then like a light bulb turning on Rusty figured out what he was going to say. He turned towards the camera and pressed record to begin again.

"Hello alumnae, my name is Rusty Cartwright and I am a Kappa Tau Gamma," he began. "It's funny, I have sat here for the past several minutes trying to think about what I should say to you guys to really show you what the Greek system has given me. And now I feel silly to have to even think about it. There are actually two things that I wouldn't have if it wasn't for joining Kappa Tau; my confidence and my sister."

Rusty smiled into the camera and continued.

"I am what a lot of people consider a nerd. I majored in polymer science and lived in the honors engineering dorm when I was a freshman. Going through rush was very discouraging for me. I had no social skills and said so many wrong things to the guys I was trying to impress. But then I got to Omega Chi and finally realized that I just needed to be myself. I did the same at Kappa Tau and ended up spitting my drink all over a girl's face," Rusty said that with a little chuckle as he remembered that night. "The whole drink thing is another story in itself but for reasons unimportant to this video I ended up going with Kappa Tau and met my big brother Cappie. Cappie has been like the actual big brother I never had. He really helped me come out of my nerdy shell and become more confident and less socially awkward. I went from never having a girlfriend to having several of them during college. I admit, it was hard at first to find a balance between my academics and Greek life but in the end I came out on top. I was still able to get good grades while having fun with my brothers. I now have the confidence to stand up for myself, to go up to a complete stranger and talk to them. Without the guidance of my brothers I would probably be living in a one bedroom apartment with two cats right now, only focusing on my career. But instead I have found the love of my life and have so many friends to go out and do things with. When I began school I thought having a social life wasn't important. But the Greek system really taught me how important a social life is to your overall well-being. The current Kappa Tau president Peter Parkes was actually my little brother and he was the same nerd I was freshman year. But I've seen the Greek system help him the same way it's helped me and I know it's probably true for hundreds of others out there. You can't teach someone confidence but you can certainly help them develop it within themselves. And that's something I think fraternities and sororities can help many future student accomplish."

Rusty paused for a second to gather his next thoughts and continued.

"And the other reason the Greek system has changed my life is that it has given me a relationship with my sister, my real biological sister. We were always opposites growing up. As I said, I was the nerd. And Casey, she was the social one. She always had friends she was going out with on the weekends while I stayed at home and watched Joan of Arcadia with my parents. Yeah, I guess I really was pretty pathetic. Anyway, I thought going to the same school would help Casey and I develop a better relationship but that apparently wasn't enough. At first she gave me this whole speech about scheduling monthly brunches to catch up but basically it was her way of avoiding me since I was the annoying little brother. She hadn't even told any of her friends that she had a brother. But everything changed with I joined the Greek system. All of a sudden I became the little brother that she cared about and looked out for instead of the one she tried to avoid. I don't want to say that we were forced to hang out because of the Greek system because that's not how it was. I guess in a way the Greek system was finally something that the two of us had in common that we were able to talk about. We were finally apart of the same social circle and that in itself brought us closer together. Now my sister and I have such a great relationship. I could go into detail all the wonderful things that the two of us experienced to help our relationship grow like formals and Greek floats and date parties but I would probably be here forever talking about all that and I know you have a lot of videos to watch. Just know that I owe my entire relationship with my sister to the Greek system. And while future students may not have the same situation I have, the Greek system is a means for any relationship to grow; whether that is romantic, friendship or between family members. You may want to take the Greek system away because you think it's all about being social and I guess I'm telling you that you're right. But for people like me who have never really had a social life the Greek system is an opportunity to change that. Being social doesn't always have to be about drinking beer and partying. Being social is how we all form all types of relationships in our lives and taking away the Greek system would take away that opportunity for any future student coming to CRU. Give them a chance to form those relationships. Don't take the Greek system away. It's such a positive experience for so many people I don't even want to think about what CRU would be like without it."

Rusty paused for another second and realized that he was pleased with what he had said. And quite frankly Cappie would probably have to cut a lot out if he talked any longer. So he stood up and stopped the recording. Before leaving the room Rusty let out a smile. That was a lot easier than he thought it was going to be and he was really pleased with what he had said. But there was no time to think about it anymore, he had a tea party to get to and a nephew to meet.

* * *

_**A/N: Hey everyone! Man, for some reason I was having a lot of trouble finding the motivation to write this next chapter. Maybe it's because I'm sad the show is almost over :0( But nonetheless I finished it tonight so here it is. I hope you guys liked it and liked Rusty's speech. I originally wasn't going to have Jordan's speech actually written but found a creative way to stick it in so hopefully you liked hers too. You know reviews are always welcomed :0)**_

_**Monday's episode was cute. Pledge Spidey pulled off the Justin Beiber (not sure if I spelled that right or not...hehe) look very well LoL! I just wish there would have been more Cappie and Casey scenes. I know the show doesn't really revolve around them but the writers like to tease us with an episode or two with a ton of scenes and then a couple episodes with like one or without any at all...anyone else notice that? Anyway, the promo for the finale looks good. I'm still worried there is way too much to wrap up in just an hour episode but have faith in the writers to give us closure on what we need. Not sure if I'll get another chapter up before Monday night but if I don't, enjoy the finale. I'll update again as soon as I can. **_


	151. Forever Friends

FOREVER FRIENDS

Cappie was beginning to take down the camera when there was a small knock on the door.

"Hey Cap," said Ashleigh as she walked in. "Can we talk for a second?"

"Sure," said Cappie sitting in one of the chairs as Ashleigh sat in another. "When did you get here? I didn't know you were here."

"Yeah, I was in Casey's room talking with her and Jordan for a little bit," Ashleigh replied. "But I'm on my way back home now. I know I wasn't here very long but Beaver's called me like three times already. I think he's nervous being the first time he's alone with Matthew."

"Just wait until he has to do it with both babies," said Cappie with a small laugh. "It'll be that much more nerve-wracking."

"Well Matthew already peed on Beaver so I'm not sure how much worse it could get," said Ashleigh with a small laugh.

"Oh my, guess the little man didn't waste any time huh?" said Cappie.

"Definitely something you need to watch out for with the new baby," said Ashleigh. "Apparently little boys have a little more aim than girls do…."

Cappie laughed. "Thanks for the advice Ash, I'll keep that in mind."

"Anytime," Ashleigh replied looking away from him.

"So was there something else you wanted to talk about?" Cappie asked. "You seemed kind of serious when you walked in here."

"Well, I kind of wanted to know if you had any advice on parenting," she asked. "How did you and Casey make things work?"

"I don't think I have any magical answers to that question Ash," Cappie replied. "Parenting is something that you just kind of learn as you go along. At this point as long as the baby is fed and the diaper is changed there isn't a whole lot to do. But—"

"That's not really what I meant," Ashleigh interrupted him. "I mean how did you and Casey make it work? How did you guys figure out who gets up when and who does what and do this without driving each other crazy?"

"Beaver driving you crazy already?" Cappie asked in a somewhat knowing tone of voice.

"It's not like that exactly," Ashleigh replied. "I know he's scared because I'm scared too but it's only the first day and I'm already getting a little frustrated. Before I left we got into a little argument about who should go to the hospital and when and for how long and I'm just kind of scared that this or something that is going to get worse and worse as we go on."

Cappie watched as Ashleigh looked down at the ground like she was about to cry. He scooted his chair closer to her and put his arm around her.

"You and Beaver are both very strong people Ash," said Cappie. "And I think it's important to remember that no matter how hard things start to get, you two really do love each other. Raising a baby is not easy and I'm pretty sure raising two at the same time can't be any easier. But I think it's important that you and Beaver establish some sort of plan or understanding with each other. Parenting involves a lot of compromises and communication. I remember once when Evan and I made plans to go golfing and Casey and Rebecca made plans to go to the nail solon with each of us thinking the other would watch Cadence. That time was a lack of communication on our part and we've learned from that mistake. There's no need to worry or be afraid of the mistakes you make as long as you two learn to grow from them."

"That makes sense," said Ashleigh as she looked up at Cappie. "And I'm probably reading more into this than anything. It just makes me a little nervous about Beaver and me. I've seen so many relationships end after a couple has a child and I don't want that to be me."

"You also have to remember that you've seen a relationship come together because of a child," said Cappie with a small smile. "So the door does swing both ways."

"Yeah, I guess you're right," said Ashleigh.

"I'll talk to Beaver if you want me too because I know how he can get and I seem to have this gift in calming him down for some reason," said Cappie with a small laugh. "But I also think you would feel better talking to him about your feelings too. If he's not aware of the way you're feeling he can't do anything to help correct that."

"You should really have your own show like Oprah," said Ashleigh with a laugh. "You always give some of the best relationship advice."

"I don't really see myself as Oprah," said Cappie with a smile. "Being a masculine guy like myself I think I would be more like a Dr. Phil."

"I'm surprised you even know who Dr. Phil is," said Ashleigh.

"Of course I know who is his," Cappie replied. "Every weekday at three o'clock was Oprah hour at the Kappa Tau house. We never missed an episode."

Ashleigh just let out a little laugh and rolled her eyes at Cappie.

"Well, regardless if I'm Dr. Phil or Oprah, I have some pretty amazing friends to give that advice to," said Cappie squeezing his arm around Ashleigh's shoulders. "So it's really not that hard to give."

Ashleigh stood up as did Cappie and they gave each other a hug.

"You keep my best friend and that baby in there safe OK?" she said into Cappie's shoulder.

"That's my job," said Cappie with a smile. "And you're job is to talk to Beaver. You two will be just fine as long as you talk about things."

"Thanks Cap," said Ashleigh as she backed away and looked at her watch. "I should probably get going now though."

"I was actually just about to take down the camera," said Cappie. "Rusty just finished up his video but I've got some time if you want to record yours now."

"I don't know Cap," Ashleigh hesitated. "I should really get home to Beaver and I'm really kind of emotional at the moment."

"I think that's the best time to do it," said Cappie raising his eyebrows at Ashleigh.

Ashleigh still didn't respond.

"Come on, it won't take very long," Cappie continued to plead. "I'll even call Beaver on the phone and keep him calm while you do it."

Ashleigh took a deep breath. "Alright, I guess I can do this now," she said as she sat in the chair in front of the camera.

Cappie went behind the camera to make sure it was still set up OK.

"It's all set," he said walking to the door. "Just push record on the front. I'll be out here on the phone with Beaver until you're done."

"Thanks Cap," said Ashleigh as she watched Cappie walk out of the room and shut the door.

Ashleigh sat and thought for a second as to what she was going to say but then decided it would be best just to go with whatever came to her head at the moment. So she promptly reached forward and pressed record on the camera.

"Hi everyone! My name is Ashleigh Thompson, formerly Ashleigh Howard, and I was and always will be a Zeta Beta Zeta," she started. "I was the type of girl who knew she wanted to rush a sorority before she even started college. I used to watch all the cool things fraternities and sororities did on television and movies and knew I wanted to be a part of it. I knew it would probably be different than what I saw on television but I was sure there was going to be one thing in common and that was forming friendships that last a lifetime and I certainly got that out of Zeta Beta Zeta. I met my best friend Casey in our dorms freshman year and we decided to rush together. We ended up joining the same house and have really been forever friends since. I don't know what I would do without Casey. We've grown up so much since freshman year. It's hard to believe that I just had twins and she's in the middle of having her second baby right now. I knew we would be here at some point in our lives but I guess I didn't plan on it happening this fast. I think ZBZ really helped me grow up a lot and be more prepared to face the real world. I was elected president my senior year which was more of an accident than anything. I didn't really want to be president. I wanted Casey to be president because she knew what she was doing, I didn't have a clue. But being president really taught me a lot. I learned very quickly that you can't please everyone and life is more about compromise than I thought. I never considered myself as a leader but being president of ZBZ gave me that chance and I'm sure the Greek system gave that chance to hundreds of other presidents of the many fraternities and sororities on the CRU campus. Without Zeta Beta Zeta I may have never really found my 'grown up' self and I'm sure there are plenty of other Greek members out there who feel the same way."

Ashleigh paused to collect her thoughts for a second. She felt little drops of tears form in her eyes as she talked about Casey and all the friendships she had made through Zeta Beta Zeta. Once she was able to push the tears back she continued.

"I know a lot of you think the Greek system is about hooking up between co-eds and that's probably not the best image to portray. But I'm here to tell you that I think it's more important than you may think. Being in a sorority not only gave me access to some of the hottest men on campus but it also gave me a group of girls to lean on when they broke my heart. I dated and was actually engaged to our house hasher for a while. Even though he wasn't Greek he was still very involved since he was dating me. He cheated on me once and I took him back which was probably the dumbest thing I had ever done. And then he cheated on me again and we were done for good. My sisters, Casey especially, were there to pick up the pieces of my broken heart because I really thought I loved him and he loved me. She helped me see that there was a better guy for me out there somewhere. And oddly enough, she was right. Charles, or Beaver as we like to call him, was a Kappa Tau at CRU. I knew of him but I wouldn't have considered us friends or anything while we were in school. But after we graduated and I needed someone else there to help pick up the pieces of my broken heart, he was there. I never would have picked us to be together during college but giving some time for both of us to grow up and establish ourselves in the real world really helped bring us together. And now we're married and have a set of beautiful twins like I mentioned before. My life couldn't be happier and I owe it all to the Greek system. Being in a sorority taught me how to grow up, how to experience and date boys and what real friendship and sisterhood means. Casey and Rebecca are the sisters I talk to the most but I still have everyone else's number and I know they would be there to help me in a heartbeat if I ever needed anything. That's what sisterhood and friendship is all about. Without Zeta Beta Zeta I wouldn't have the friends that I have today and probably wouldn't be as grown up and successful as I am today. Don't take away that chance for lasting friendships and the possibility of finding love from the current and future students of CRU. And that my friends is why you should keep the Greek system around. Thank you very much."

With that Ashleigh smiled at the camera once last time before standing up and turning it off.

* * *

_**A/N: Hey everyone! Sorry for the shorter chapter but this is where I left off writing before watching the finale last night and I just really wanted to post something to see how you guys all thought of the finale. I have to be honest, I was an emotional wreck the last 30 minutes of the episode! Once they actually tore down the KT house the tears started coming. I thought the show was going to be sad because it was ending but I had no idea the actual content in the episode would make me cry! I was waiting for someone to stop the demolition and then it didn't happen and I have to commend the writers for going there with that. It was definately unexpected but a good stepping stone for the new KT at the same time. I think my instincts were right that even though it was a great finale it did seem like it was rushed a little bit. Everything just happened so fast. Glad to see that Casey and Cappie were still together in the end but I was really shocked that Casey would just give up law school like that and go off with no plan or no place to live or anything in DC. It was a little random and while not totally off the wall, a little out of character for her given all the focus she had on law school and her career last chapter. I could probably go on and talk forever about it but overall I think it was a great episode and a great ending to the show.**_

_**Also, didn't know if you guys knew or not but the episode is now on itunes and it has 2 additional scenes and a couple of things added to scenes that were already in the episode because I guess the first cut was a little too long for the hour and they had to cut some stuff. There is a really good Cappie and Evan scene where they hug each other and make up which I thought was cute given everything the two of them had been through. Anyway, enough going on from me...LoL! Let me know what you guys thought of the episode, I would love to hear! And I promise the next chapter will be longer and more exciting :0)**_


	152. Stone Washed

STONE WASHED

Ashleigh walked out of the conference room and saw Cappie standing on the other side of the hallway and on the phone with Beaver, just as he had promised.

"You're wifey is done now," she heard him say as she walked up to him. "OK, OK, I'll talk to you soon buddy. Bye."

"How's he doing?" Ashleigh asked.

"Just fine," Cappie replied. "He said the baby is actually sleeping right now so there isn't a whole lot for him to do and he said you didn't have to rush home if you didn't want to."

"Did you say anything to him about what we talked about?" Ashleigh asked.

"Not in so many words," Cappie replied. "I figured you would want to be the one to tell him but I just kind of hinted around the fact that he needs to calm down a little bit and just take it one day at a time."

"Thanks, that really means a lot to me that you did that," said Ashleigh.

"Anytime," said Cappie as the two of them turned to walk back towards the waiting room.

"Daddy come play!" said Cadence as soon as she saw Cappie walk into the room.

"Duty calls I guess," said Cappie turning to Ashleigh. "Let me know if I can do anything else to help."

"I will," Ashleigh replied. "I'm actually going to check up on Maddison before I leave since Beaver said Matt is sleeping."

"Tell her I said hi," said Cappie with a wink.

"I will," Ashleigh replied as she walked back into the labor and delivery wing.

"So, what are you guys playing?" Cappie asked as he sat down at the table with Rusty and Cadence.

"Tea party!" said Cadence. "You have pink cup."

Cappie smiled as he took the light pink tea cup from his daughter. "Why thank you," he said. "Pink is my favorite color."

"I got the purple one," said Rusty as he turned to Cappie and smiled.

"Russy want more?" Cadence asked as she held the tea kettle up to Rusty.

"I think I'm alright for now," said Rusty. "Why don't you go and see if your grandma wants any?"

"OK," said Cadence as she took the plastic tea kettle over to Cappie's mom.

"I called my parents because I wasn't sure if you or Casey got around to it," said Rusty. "They should be here any minute."

"I think Casey said she called them earlier but thanks for doing that if she didn't," said Cappie as he leaned back in his chair.

"Everything alright?" Rusty asked.

"Yeah, of course," Cappie replied. "Just getting a little stir crazy I guess. Waiting for your child to be born is the worst waiting game ever."

"You think he'll be a KT when he goes to college?" Rusty asked.

"Sure," Cappie replied. "If there is even a KT for him to be a part of."

"I've got a good feeling about our videos," said Rusty. "I really think they are going to show the executive board what exactly the Greek system has done for all of us. Your legacy will carry on through your son."

Cappie smiled.

"What? Did I say something funny?" Rusty asked.

"No, it's just weird hearing 'your son' for the first time," said Cappie. "As much as I love my little girl there is something really cool about having a son who you can teach sports to and how to get girls and all that manly stuff."

"Well your son is already a lucky boy to have you for a father and Casey for a mother," said Rusty.

"And you for an uncle," said Cappie as he nudged Rusty in the shoulder.

Before Rusty could reply Jordan walked out and joined them at the table.

"Everything alright?" Rusty asked.

"Yeah, the nurses were just helping Casey get to the bathroom so I told her I would step out to give her some privacy," said Jordan.

"You guys have a good talk?" Rusty asked.

"We had a great talk," Jordan replied. "I feel like I haven't talked to her in so long and she's like the sister I never had."

"Well hopefully soon she'll be your real sister-in-law," said Rusty smiling at Jordan.

"And then the two of you can give me lots of nieces and nephews to spoil," said Cappie grinning at both of them.

"Nice try," said Jordan rolling her eyes. "No babies for a while."

"I agree," said Rusty as he reached for Jordan's hand. "Someday we will, just not now."

"Excuse me you two," said Cappie as he stood up and walked over towards his mom who was happily sipping her fake glass of tea.

"The tea is delicious isn't it?" Cappie asked as he sat down next to her and pulled Cadence into his lap.

"Oh yeah, the best I've ever had," Mrs. Cappington played along.

"When is the baby going to come?" Cadence asked as she looked up at Cappie.

"Soon hopefully," said Cappie as he kissed the top of Cadence's head.

"Why don't you go see if your Aunt Jordan wants any tea," said Mrs. Cappington.

"OK," said Cadence as she slid off Cappie's lap and went over to Jordan and Rusty.

"Getting tired of waiting yet?" Mrs. Cappington asked as she turned to Cappie.

"Pretty much," said Cappie with a sigh. "But I'm also getting this nostalgic feeling today for some reason. Maybe it's because I'm about to be a father for the second time or maybe it's because of the whole Greek system getting shut down thing. I don't know."

"There's nothing wrong with feeling that way," said Mrs. Cappington. "It's perfectly normal to reflect and just think about everything that has happened in your life when something new like this is about to happen."

"It's a little scary you know," said Cappie turning to look at his mom. "I guess you could say I'm more confident in my abilities in being a father because of Cadence but it's probably going to be more difficult managing both of them and making sure you give the right amount of time to each of them." Cappie looked over at Cadence and let out a small sigh. "I know she's excited about the new baby but I don't want her to feel jealous or left out or anything. That's one of my biggest fears."

"It's definitely going to be a fine line that you're going to have to learn," said Mrs. Cappington as she put her hand on Cappie's knee. "And with you being my one and only child I can't really give you any advice on the matter. But I have no doubt in my mind that you and Casey will find a way to make everything work."

"You certainly seem to be on Casey's team a lot more lately," said Cappie.

"Her and I had a really nice talk," said Mrs. Cappington with a smile. "I finally got to see why she really means so much to you. She's a very bright and caring woman. I don't think I could have picked a more perfect girl for you."

Cappie smiled and gave his mom a hug.

"Now if we could only get dad on the same page," he said as he backed away.

"Oh I don't think that'll be much trouble," said Mrs. Cappington. "Once he sees his beautiful granddaughter and holds his grandson in his arms for the first time I think he'll get it."

"Wait, is dad….coming here?" Cappie asked trying not to get his hopes up too much.

"Of course he's coming here," said Mrs. Cappington. "He and I also have had some really good discussions. He even mentioned the possibility of us moving to the area to be closer to you and our grandchildren."

"Whoa," said Cappie with a look of shock on his face. "Are you serious?"

"As I said, it's still in the discussion stage," said Mrs. Cappington. "But spending these past several days with Cadence has really made me see how much I've missed not being around while she's growing up."

Cappie watched as his mom reached up and tried to disguise the fact that she was wiping a tear out of her eye. He really didn't know what to say. He's never really seen his mom cry a whole lot in his life. So he did the only thing he knew and pulled her in for another hug, this time squeezing her much tighter.

"Mr. Cappington?" a voice interrupted his moment with his mom.

"Yeah, that's me," he said backing away and looking over at the nurse who just entered the waiting room.

"Your wife is asking for you," she said as she turned around and left the room.

"That's my cue," he said standing up.

As he walked out of the waiting room he almost ran into Casey's parents as they were walking in.

"Hey Cappie!" said Mr. Cartwright. "How are things going?"

"I was actually just heading back to check on her," said Cappie. "I'll let you guys know once I find out something."

"Tell her I said hi and that I love her," said Mrs. Cartwright as Cappie passed by her.

"I sure will," Cappie replied as the nurse unlocked the doors for him to enter the wing.

Cappie felt like skipping to Casey's room, but unfortunately he didn't have any idea how to skip. But nonetheless he had a smile plastered on his face. He felt like things in his life were beginning to fall more into place. He was about to have a second child with the love of his life, he was finally getting his relationship with his parents the way it should be and he had a whole waiting room full of family and friends who genuinely cared about him.

He walked into Casey's room to find her sitting up in bed, but looking as pale as a ghost. His smile instantly was wiped off his face as he rushed to her bedside.

"What's going on?" he asked.

"My blood pressure sky rocketed after I got back from using the bathroom," she replied as she leaned back in the bed. "They gave me some more medicine but it still isn't coming down. The nurse has a page out to Dr. Snyder right now to see what happens from here."

"You really don't look so good," said Cappie as he took a washcloth on the table next to him and put it on Casey's forehead.

"I don't feel so good," Casey replied. "The room is spinning at like a hundred miles an hour and it's making me really nauseous."

"Why didn't anyone come and get me sooner?" he asked as he grabbed her hand and squeezed it.

"This all just happened so fast," said Casey as she closed her eyes. "I was feeling fine until I got up to go to the bathroom. Then it just hit me like a ton of bricks."

Cappie turned to look at the monitor next to Casey's bed. He could see that her heart rate was higher than it had been and her last blood pressure reading was also one of the highest it's ever been. He was starting to panic but trying his hardest to remain as calm as he could for Casey.

"Are you feeling sleepy?" Cappie asked as he reached up and turned the washcloth over on her head. "Can you open your eyes?"

"No, I'm not sleeping," said Casey without opening her eyes. "The dizziness is worse with my eyes open so I'm just trying to keep them closed for right now to try and get it to go away."

"OK," said Cappie with a deep breath. "I just don't want you passing out on me or anything."

The two of them sat in silence for a few more minutes until Dr. Snyder came rushing into the room.

"Casey? Are you with me here?" she asked noticing Casey's eyes were closed once she reached the bed.

"Yeah," she said opening her eyes just a little to look at Dr. Snyder. "I don't get as dizzy with my eyes closed, that's all."

"Well you shouldn't be feeling dizzy at all," said Dr. Snyder as she examined the monitors next to Casey's bed. "I'm starting to get a little concerned here."

"Concerned about what?" Cappie asked as he stood up out of the chair.

"These blood pressure readings are way too high," she said still examining the monitors. "And over the past several minutes the baby's heart rate has increased a little also. I believe the baby is getting too stressed."

"Alright, so let's speed up the labor here," said Cappie in an anxious tone. "Is it time to break her water to get things started?"

"I'm afraid that's not going to be enough," said Dr. Snyder. "I think it's time to start considering just going in for a c-section."

"What?" Casey exclaimed, now opening her eyes all the way despite the majorly nauseous feeling she was getting at the moment. "I don't want to do that. I want this baby to be born the normal way."

"Sometimes we don't get that choice," said Dr. Snyder. "I think at this time it's going to be the safest for both you and the baby to have the c-section."

"What if we decided to hold off?" Cappie asked.

"I would strongly advise against it," said Dr. Snyder. "Casey's blood pressure is already too high and if it goes any higher she is at risk for having a stroke or a seizure. And with her blood pressure being as high as it is, the baby isn't getting as much blood and oxygen as he should be causing stress on him and his heart rate to go up. I'm afraid the c-section is our only option right now."

Cappie looked down at Casey who now had tears streaming down her face.

"Cap?" she asked as she began to break down.

"I know this isn't what we wanted," he said as he sat back down and grabbed her hand. "But you have to think of both your health and the baby's."

"Once the baby is born your blood pressure should go down and he'll no longer be at risk since he'll be breathing and pumping blood on his own," added Dr. Snyder.

Cappie reached up and wiped the tears off of her cheek.

"It'll be OK," he said in a soft voice. "I'll be there right next to you. I promise."

An eerie silence came over the room as Casey collected her thoughts.

"OK," she said nodding her head. "We'll do whatever needs to be done to keep everyone safe."

"I'll let the team know to start getting the operating room ready," said Dr. Snyder as she walked over to the closet in the room and pulled out several things. "You'll need to suit up in this dad," she said handing a gown to Cappie. "Casey just needs to have a cap on over her hair. The nurses will be in to take you to the operating room when it's ready."

With that Dr. Snyder rushed out of the room to get everything ready.

"This, this is not supposed to go this way," said Casey continuing to hold onto Cappie's hand for dear life.

"You heard the doctor though," said Cappie sitting on the edge of her bed. "You don't want to have a stroke. Plus think about how much better things will be once this is all over. You'll be able to get out of bed and walk around just like normal."

"I know," said Casey as she looked down towards her stomach. "I'm, I'm just scared."

"Hey," said Cappie softly as he lifted up her chin to look at him. "I'm scared too. But we know Dr. Snyder knows what she is doing and she wouldn't be suggesting we do this if she wasn't truly concerned for yours and the baby's well being."

"It's just, just, one more thing to pile on," said Casey through her tears. "One more thing to add, to add to this, this nightmare of a pregnancy."

"But isn't the end result completely worth it?" Cappie asked, a tear now falling down his cheek. Even though he wanted to be as strong as he could for Casey, he was starting to lose it himself.

Casey just nodded her head yes as the two of them placed their foreheads against each other and quietly let the tears fall down their cheeks. It was one of the most emotional moments the two of them have ever shared. They each began to flash back to when Casey had surgery the last time. Even though this was a little different, the fear of something going wrong was still there and it was more than either of them could handle without the support of each other. Cappie reached up and placed both of his hands on Casey's face.

"I love you," he said softly as he sniffled.

"I, I love you too," said Casey as she wrapped her arms around Cappie and squeezed as tightly as she could.

The two of them sat like that for the next minute, comforting each other while letting their deepest emotions out at the same time. They both knew the surgery was the best thing to do; it was just hard to accept the fact that it was actually going to happen.

Cappie leaned in and gave Casey a soft kiss on the lips before he backed away. He stood up and silently put the gown and shoe covers on over his clothes. He then took the cap that looked very much like a hair net and put it on his head. He watched as Casey took a couple of deep breaths and finally looked up at him. She couldn't help but let out a little giggle.

"What? You've never seen a guy in a sexy hair net like this?" Cappie joked, trying to lighten the mood as much as he could.

"You do look pretty silly," said Casey as she sat up and wiped the tears off her cheeks.

"Well we might as well look silly together then," said Cappie as he walked over and placed the other cap on Casey's head.

Casey reached up and adjusted it so all of her hair was neatly tucked underneath.

"Well?" she asked looking up at him.

He looked at her and smiled. "You look just as beautiful as the first day I saw you."

Casey's smile grew slightly and she even blushed a little. "Thanks honey."

"I'm going to go and let everyone know what is going on before we start," Cappie said as he looked up at the clock. "I'll be right back."

"OK," said Casey as he walked out of the room.

Cappie quickly made it to the entrance of the waiting room, with his daughter being the first one to notice him.

"Daddy, are you going to space?" she asked noticing the strange outfit he was now wearing.

"No," said Cappie as he looked around the room. "We're going to have a baby. Casey is about to go in for a c-section."

"Oh my gosh!" exclaimed Mrs. Cartwright. "Is everything alright?"

"Her blood pressure is getting too high," Cappie replied. "The doctor thinks this is the best thing to do."

"What's see-session?" Cadence asked as she walked over and stood in front of Cappie.

Cappie was about to respond when Rusty stood up and walked over to them.

"Your dad has to get back to your mom right now," Rusty said as he picked Cadence up. "I'll explain it to you in a little bit."

"Daddy, you crying?" Cadence asked as she was able to see Cappie's face a lot easier now that she was in Rusty's arms.

"I'm fine," said Cappie as he ran his hands through her hair. "And I'll be back to see you in a little bit."

Cappie leaned down and gave her a kiss on the cheek before he turned around and made his way back into the labor and delivery wing. The walk down the hall to Casey's room was much different this time. His walk before was full of life and he had a huge smile on his face. This time the anxiety and nervousness was written all over his face. He would give anything to go back to the way it was before.

* * *

_**A/N: I hope you guys like this chapter and I'm glad it turned out longer than the last one. Sorry to leave you with a little cliffhanger there but I've been good about updating quicker so hopefully I won't leave you waiting too long to see what happens. Keep the reviews coming, you know I love them :0)**_

_**Also, I'm contemplating on writing a post finale story...I want to do something like 1 or 2 chapters (nothing too long) but I'm having a hard time coming up with a really good idea and if I should just have C/C or base it around all of the characters or not. What do you guys think? I'm up for any ideas you might have, just let me know. Thanks!**_


	153. Boy Meets World

BOY MEETS WORLD

Cappie held Casey's hand tightly as the nurses wheeled her bed into the operating room. He didn't want to let her go for anything but that moment soon came when she had to move over to the operating table and let the staff begin to prep her for surgery.

"I'm right here," said Cappie as he slowly released her hand. "I'm not going anywhere."

Casey just nodded her head, trying her hardest to fight tears from falling down her face. She didn't want to let go of the safety of Cappie's hand but watching him look at her intently while she was prepped for the surgery made her at least feel a little calmer.

"Dad, you can sit right here," said a nurse who rolled a stool right next to Casey's head for Cappie to sit in.

"Wow, front row seat," Cappie tried his best to lighten the mood as he smiled down at Casey.

"I guess daddy deserves the best seat in the house," Casey replied with a small smile back to him.

Cappie reached for Casey's hand and squeezed it just as Dr. Snyder entered the room.

"Any last questions either of you have?" she asked as she walked up to the two of them.

"Yeah, how long does this take?" Cappie asked.

"Once we determine her epidural is working and doesn't feel any pain the actual birth is anywhere from five to ten minutes," Dr. Snyder replied. "The final steps where we clean and stitch everything up usually takes longer, probably about a half an hour afterwards."

"OK," said Cappie with a deep breath. "I guess we're ready when you are."

"I'm going to go scrub in with my assistant and we should be back to get started in a few minutes," said Dr. Snyder as she turned and walked out of the room.

"It's kind of cold in here," said Casey as she shivered.

Cappie began rubbing her arm up and down to try and warm her up. He really wanted more than anything to wrap his arms around her to keep her from shivering but given the circumstances that wasn't able to happen. So rubbing her arm was the next best thing at the moment. He watched as one of the nurses rolled Casey's gown up to expose her stomach. His heart raced faster knowing how soon he was going to be seeing and holding his son.

Another nurse began to rub iodine on Casey's stomach and Cappie looked at her strangely.

"What is that stuff for?" he asked.

"It's just iodine to clean the areas around where the doctor is going to cut," the nurse replied. "We don't want her or the baby to get any infection during the delivery."

"No, we certainly do not," said Casey as she lifted her head up to see her normally pale skinned stomach was now an orange and brown color.

The nurse then began to lay blue cloths around Casey's stomach leaving just that part exposed. The next thing they knew one of the blue cloths was getting hung up in front of the two of them.

"Hey wait, I can't see," said Cappie to the nurse, quite annoyed with what she just did.

"This is standard procedure," said the nurse. "It further prevents any infection and blocks the two of you who may pass out or become nauseous while watching the surgery."

"I can handle seeing blood," said Casey. "I've watched the Discovery Channel many times before."

"Me too," added Cappie. "Well, I can't really say I've watched the Discovery Channel a lot but I don't mind seeing blood. And I want to see my son actually being born."

"I'm sorry," said the nurse. "This is how it has to be done. Once the baby is delivered and cleaned he will be taken right to you guys."

The nurse walked away, obviously not wanting to deal with the questions and complaints from Cappie and Casey anymore.

"Well this sucks," said Casey as she turned to look at Cappie.

Cappie stood up really quickly and sat back down just as quick.

"I can still see if I stand up," he said looking at her. "So maybe I can get away with doing that once we start."

"But I still won't be able to see anything," said Casey with a sigh.

Cappie looked at her with a sad expression. He felt bad for Casey and wished there was something he could do to change things but for once in his life he truly felt helpless.

"I won't stand up and look if it will make you feel better," he said as he took his hand and stroked the side of Casey's cheek.

"No, I'm not going to stop you," Casey replied. "I guess one of us seeing the birth is better than neither of us."

"I'm sorry," was all Cappie could say at the moment as he continued to stroke her cheek.

Casey took a deep breath and was about to say something when Dr. Snyder came into the room with her hands in the air. They watched as one of the nurses helped her put gloves on and then she walked up to the operating table.

"Ready to meet your baby?" she asked looking over the cloth at Cappie and Casey.

"More than ever," Cappie replied with a smile.

"Alright, Casey, I need you to tell me if you feel any of this," said Dr. Snyder as she began to take some tools and pinch areas around Casey's stomach where she was going to make the incision.

"I can't feel anything," Casey replied after a few seconds.

"Excellent," said Dr. Snyder who then took the scalpel from the nurse and cut through the first layers of Casey's skin on the bottom part of her stomach.

Cappie began to bounce his heels up and down on the floor with nervousness. He sat there contemplating if he should stand up at this time or wait until later in the procedure in case he was told he couldn't stand up and had to sit back down.

"Alright we've reached the uterus," said Dr. Snyder. "How are her vitals doing?"

"A little high but holding steady," said the anesthesiologist.

Cappie lifted Casey's hand a little and bent down to give her a kiss on the back of her hand. Casey turned to smile at Cappie as the anesthesiologist put the oxygen on Casey's face.

"What's that for?" Cappie asked.

"Nothing to be concerned about," the anesthesiologist replied. "Her oxygen is getting a little low but this should help bring it back up."

"Alright, I just broke the water," said Dr. Snyder. "You doing OK Casey?"

"Yeah," Casey mumbled through the mask on her face.

Casey didn't feel Dr. Snyder break her water but after she said that Casey felt a lot of pressure in her abdomen as they worked to get the baby out.

"OK, almost there," Dr. Snyder said.

This was it. Cappie knew it now or never for him to stand up and take a peek. He glanced at Casey one last time before he stood up and looked over the cloth. He was happy no one had told him to sit down right away and he had no intentions of sitting down once he saw the sight before him. He watched in awe as Dr. Snyder pulled out a very bald head and shoulders of the baby. Before bringing the baby all the way out the assistants began suctioning out his mouth and nose. Cappie smiled as he watched his son try to squirm away from the tubes they were trying to put in him. He obviously didn't like it too much.

"And here we are!" said Dr. Snyder as she pulled the baby all the way out and rested him against Casey's legs. "Happy birthday little guy!"

Cappie became completely overwhelmed with emotion at that moment. A few tears escaped his eyes as he watched the little miracle he and Casey made enter the world.

"Dad, since you're already standing would you like to cut the cord?" Dr. Snyder asked attempting to get Cappie's attention as he stood there just staring at his son.

"Uh, yeah," he said trying to bring himself back to reality.

Dr. Snyder lifted the baby up to bring him closer to Cappie and showed him where to cut. Cappie took the scissors and gently cut the cord, freeing the baby from Casey. He immediately flashed back to cutting the cord for Cadence and was glad he got to do it again this time. With all the rush to get Casey into surgery he hadn't even thought about telling Dr. Snyder he wanted to be the one to cut the cord. He grew even more respect for her knowing she tried to keep some traditions the same even though this situation was much different than the last.

"Say hi to mommy!" said Dr. Snyder as she lifted the baby up so his head peeked over the sheet for Casey to see after Cappie had cut the cord.

The anesthesiologist removed the oxygen mask from Casey's face so she could get a good look at her new baby.

"Oh my gosh, he's so cute," said Casey as she got the first glimpse of her son.

The moment was short lived as the doctor handed the baby to the nurses so they could clean him up and check him over. At first Cappie wanted to rush over and watch them get the baby ready but he opted to stay with Casey instead. She needed him more than ever now and he was determined to be there for her.

He sat back down on his stool and wheeled as close to her as he could.

"We make the most beautiful babies," he whispered to her as he kissed her cheek which was wet from her tears.

Casey was speechless at the moment. She was pretty numb to the situation at first but as soon as Dr. Snyder held the baby up so she could see the tears began to stream down her face and everything became so real. She was a mother for the second time now which was something she never pictured herself being at this point in time in her life. She turned and looked at Cappie who was staring over at the nurses getting the baby ready. She knew she was here at this point in her life because of him and she wouldn't change anything. She squeezed Cappie's hand tightly causing him to turn and look at her.

"I love you," she said softly to him.

Cappie smiled as he reached up with his other hand to wipe the tears off her cheek. "I love you too."

The two of them smiled at each other for a few seconds but were interrupted by the nurse walking over to them.

"Would you like to meet your new bundle of joy?" she asked holding the baby out to Cappie.

Cappie let go of Casey's hand and took Caleb in his arms. He was wrapped up tightly in several blankets with a blue striped hat on his head. Cappie could tell he was much smaller compared to Cadence once he was in his arms.

"Happy birthday son," Cappie said softly as he leaned down and gave the baby a kiss on the cheek.

Caleb had his eyes closed tightly, not ready to open them for the world just yet.

"I wish I could hold him," he heard Casey say next to him.

"Here, we'll do the next best thing," said Cappie as he held the baby up to Casey's face so she could kiss him on the cheek.

Casey was able to reach her one arm up and touch the smooth skin of Caleb's face.

"He looks so tiny," she said as she kissed him again.

"He weighed in at five pounds, four ounces," said the nurse who was still standing beside them. "And he's in perfect health. He's breathing on his own and his oxygen levels are normal."

"That's great news," said Cappie as he pulled the baby back closer to his chest and began to rock him back and forth.

"Whenever you're ready I'll take him to the nursery until you guys are back in the room and settled," said the nurse.

"Alright buddy," said Cappie as he pulled down the baby's hat which was starting to fall off. "This nice nurse is going to take you to the nursery while mommy gets all better. We'll see you in a little bit and introduce you to your sister and everyone else in the family."

Cappie held the baby up to Casey again so she could give him another kiss. He then kissed him one last time before handing him over to the nurse. Both of them watched as the nurse put Caleb in the bassinette and wheeled him out of the operating room.

"Are her vitals still holding steady?" Casey heard Dr. Snyder ask the anesthesiologist.

"Everything has come back down to normal levels," the anesthesiologist replied.

Both Cappie and Casey were instantly overcome with relief knowing that both mother and baby were healthy.

"You're going to feel a lot of pressure here Casey while we sew everything up," said Dr. Snyder. "Let me know if you feel any pain though."

"OK," Casey replied as she was so caught up in the moment with the baby she forgot Dr. Snyder and the nurses were still working on her behind the sheet in front of her.

"You did great babe," said Cappie squeezing her hand again.

"Thanks Cap," she replied. "Why don't you go out to the waiting room and let everyone know we have a new family member?"

"Are you sure?" Cappie asked. "I don't have a problem staying with you until everything is done."

"I'll be fine," said Casey.

"It should only be five or ten more minutes," said Dr. Snyder adding to their conversation.

Cappie looked over at Casey who nodded her head in approval.

"I'll meet you back in the room then," said Cappie as he kissed her hand. "And then you can hold Caleb for the first time."

"Sounds like a plan," said Casey as she smiled at him.

Cappie squeezed Casey's hand one last time before standing up and walking out of the operating room. As he walked by the nursery he looked inside to make sure Caleb was alright. He smiled when he saw his bassinette was right next to Maddison's. He knew it was sign that Caleb and Ashleigh's twins were going to be good friends growing up.

He turned and finally made it to the door of the waiting room. He took his cap off as he walked in the door. Everyone in the room instantly stopped what they were doing, dropped all conversations and looked at Cappie intently. At first Cappie's face was expressionless, causing some of the eager family members to get a little worried. But just as quickly he smiled from ear to ear thinking about Caleb and saw several others do the same.

"Baby Cappington is here," he finally said. "Both mom and baby are healthy and doing well."

"Oh that is such good news!" said Mrs. Cartwright who was the first one up to give Cappie a hug.

"Congratulations," said Jordan who was the next one to give Cappie a hug.

"So what is the lucky little one's name?" asked Rusty as he approached Cappie.

"Caleb Austin Cappington," Cappie replied as his smile grew wider, if that was even possible at the moment.

But his smile faded a little when the person he wanted to see the most was nowhere to be seen in the room.

"Where's Cadence?" he asked.

Rusty was about to answer when the door to the bathroom opened and Cappie's mom walked out with Cadence holding her hand.

"Daddy!" she screamed as soon as she saw him and ran to him as fast as she could.

Cappie scooped her up in his arms and looked into her beautiful blue eyes.

"Your baby brother is here now," he said to her.

Cadence's eyes grew wide as she continued to look at Cappie. "Where is he?" she finally asked breaking her stare from Cappie and looking around the room.

"The doctors and nurses are getting him and mommy all ready so you can see them," Cappie replied with a small laugh at Cadence's enthusiasm.

"When?" Cadence asked as she returned her gaze to look at Cappie.

"Very soon, I promise," Cappie replied.

Cappie then saw Casey being wheeled in the hallway out of the corner of his eye.

"Daddy has to go check on mommy and the baby really quick," he said. "But I'll come get you as soon as I can so you can hold the new baby."

"Don't leave daddy," said Cadence as she wrapped her arms tightly around Cappie's neck.

"Come on Cadence, let's finish our tea party and by the time we're done daddy should be back," said Mrs. Cappington trying to take Cadence away from Cappie.

But Cadence was holding on for dear life. She's barely seen her dad and mom over the past week and was really missing them at the moment. She didn't want to let him go.

"I wanna go with you daddy," said Cadence as she began to whine in Cappie's ear.

Cappie took a few deep breaths and rubbed her back up and down. He was really torn between staying with Cadence and making her happy or going to be with Casey and the new baby and making sure everything was still OK with them.

"Mr. Cappington your wife is back in her room now," said a nurse as she poked her head out the door.

"You see, daddy has to go now," said Cappie as he broke Cadence's grip from around his neck.

"No, please, no," said Cadence as she shook her head and tears began to form a coating over her blue eyes.

As much as Cappie wanted to bring Cadence back to the room with him, he knew he couldn't. Casey hasn't even held Caleb yet and he wanted to have a few minutes of alone time with them while she held him before letting anyone else join them. With everything she had just been through, he knew Casey deserved that.

"Sweetheart, I need you to be strong for daddy," said Cappie as he wiped away a tear that was falling down her cheek. "You are so special that you are going to be the first one out of everyone standing here to hold the new baby."

"I am?" Cadence asked as a grin began to form on her face.

"Yes, you are," said Cappie as he brushed a strand of her hair out of her face. "Just a little more waiting and then you can come back with me and hold your baby brother all you want."

"OK," said Cadence in a soft voice as she finally conceded.

"Come on honey," said Mrs. Cappington who was actually able to get Cadence to go to her this time. "We'll finish that tea party until daddy comes back."

"Thanks mom," Cappie said as he smiled at her.

"No problem," said Mrs. Cappington as she carried Cadence to the other side of the room.

"Now hurry up and get back there so I can meet my nephew," said Rusty as he playfully pushed Cappie towards the door.

"Yes sir," said Cappie with a salute as he walked back through the double doors to the labor and delivery wing.

As he walked down the hall Cappie noticed one of the nurses wheeling the baby towards Casey's room. He quickly rushed up to her.

"I can take him in if that's OK," said Cappie as he reached the bassinette.

"Sure," the nurse replied. "Just let us know if you need anything."

"Will do," said Cappie as he took hold of the bassinette and began to wheel it towards Casey's room.

He looked down at Caleb who was lying peacefully still wrapped up in all of his blankets. He couldn't really tell at the moment if he looked more like himself or Casey but he knew it really didn't matter. As long as he was here and safe and healthy; that is all that mattered.

* * *

_**A/N: So today is the first Monday with no Greek and I thought I would try and ease the pain a little bit with a new chapter with some happy Cappie and Casey moments :0) Hope you guys liked how baby Caleb entered the world.**_

_**I guess I should take this time also to let you guys know that this story is going to be ending soon. Hans asked in her review a couple of chapters ago and I've been avoiding the answer because this story has really meant so much to me over the past year and it's sad to know there is actually going to be an ending. At this time I have no clue how many more chapters it's going to be (maybe 5 to 10?) but I do know exactly how I want it to end and I know that it is getting near so I thought I would give you a little heads up. It's possible I might do a sequel with the kids older but it would depend on the amount of interest I get in it. Thanks again for reading and you know your reviews are always welcome :0)**_


	154. The Perfect Pair

THE PERFECT PAIR

Casey looked over and smiled at Cappie when she saw him walk in the room wheeling the bassinette.

"I think I have someone who wants to see you," Cappie said softly as he reached her bed.

Casey just continued to smile as Cappie lifted Caleb out of the bassinette and gently put him in Casey's arms.

"He's so small," said Casey as she looked down at him.

"Yeah, but I'm sure he's going to grow up to be nice and tall like his dad," said Cappie as he put his hand on Casey's shoulder and rubbed it softly.

Casey lifted up the hat Caleb had on to reveal his bald hand.

"Whoa, I was expecting to find a whole head of hair here," she said with a little chuckle.

"I thought the same thing," said Cappie as he touched Caleb's head. "But I'm sure it'll grow in sooner than later."

"Maybe he'll have blond hair like me," said Casey as she turned to look at Cappie. "Cadence is already a carbon copy of you so maybe Caleb can look a little more like me."

Just then Caleb whined a little and briefly opened his eyes.

"Hey little man!" said Casey excitedly as Caleb looked up at her.

"I hate to break it to you Case, but look at the color of his eyes," said Cappie.

Casey leaned closer to get a good look at Caleb's eyes.

"Damn," she said jokingly. "He got your blue eyes."

"What can I say, I guess God felt our children should be graced with the sexiest blue eyes in the world," said Cappie as he batted his eyes at Casey.

She laughed and rolled her eyes. "I feel sorry for all of the girls he meets," she said. "Because there is something about those eyes that you just can't look away from."

"I may have hypnotized a few ladies in my day," said Cappie as he stared right into Casey's eyes.

Casey just smiled as Cappie leaned down and gave her a kiss on the lips. Once they broke away Casey continued to stare down at Caleb and stroked the side of his soft cheek with her hand. There were some noises in the hallway so Cappie briefly looked away to see what they were. But when he turned back he saw that Casey wasn't smiling anymore. Instead, tears were streaming down her face.

"Hey," he said softly as he sat next to her in the bed and put his arm around her. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," said Casey as she reached up and wiped the tears off her cheek. "I just kind of got this overwhelming feeling all of a sudden."

"Overwhelming?" Cappie questioned. "Are you afraid you're not going to be able to take care of two kids or something?"

"No, nothing like that," Casey replied as she sniffled. "It's more of a feeling of accomplishment. It's like I've spent a long time climbing to the top of a mountain and being here and having Caleb in my arms feels like I've finally reached the top."

"Well, you and I make a great team," said Cappie as he squeezed Casey's shoulders.

"We do," said Casey with a weak smile. "I don't think I could have done any of this without you."

Cappie playfully looked down at the baby and then up at Casey. "Yeah, I think it would be pretty difficult to make this little guy without my help," he said trying to lighten the mood a little bit.

Casey only gave him another weak smile as she continued. "What I meant was that emotionally I'm not sure if I would be here if it wasn't for you. We both have to admit getting to this point has been almost like a living hell. Not only did we lose the first baby but I had the trauma of the surgery and almost lost my own life in the process. And then with all the pressures and medical problems and bed rest with this pregnancy, it's like I can finally feel relieved for the first time in as long as I can remember."

Cappie wasn't really sure how to respond. Casey continued to have tears pour out of her eyes and he just squeezed her even tighter to show her that it was OK with what she was feeling.

"Oddly enough I do feel the same way," Cappie finally said with a softness and compassion in his voice. "It's probably nowhere near what you're feeling right now but I was really worried about you and the baby. And while I'll still care about you two, I don't feel like I have to worry about anything bad happening anymore."

"It's certainly been a journey," said Casey as she put Caleb's hat back on him. "I just hope things will die down and get back to normal again."

"Well obviously we have a new normal now with this little guy," said Cappie as he touched Caleb's cheek. "But I'm sure we'll adapt to it quickly and things will start to feel more normal again."

Casey leaned her head against Cappie's shoulder. "I love you Cap," she said softly.

"I love you too Case," Cappie replied as he rubbed his hand up and down her arm. "I'm so happy to have this little guy finally out into the world and a part of our family."

"Speaking of family," said Casey as she looked up at Cappie. "We should probably get our fourth member and allow her to be a part of this family bonding time also."

"Good idea," said Cappie as he kissed Casey on the cheek and stood up. "I'll be right back."

"OK," said Casey as she watched Cappie walk out of the room.

* * *

Once Ashleigh found out Casey was going to have the baby she called Beaver and decided to stay at the hospital so she could be there for her best friend. Beaver was nervous at first having to spend an even longer time alone with Matthew but he was slowly getting the hang of things. He didn't want to call Ashleigh all the time like he did at first. He wanted to prove to her that he could do this and he was capable of being a good dad.

Matthew was in the swinging chair and had been resting there for a while. Beaver knew it was only a matter of time before he was going to become fussy so he made his way into the kitchen to make a bottle for the baby. He was heating it up when the phone rang.

"Hey Ash," he said answering the phone.

"Hey honey, how are things going?" Ashleigh asked.

"Everything is just fine," Beaver replied. "Matthew is sleeping and I've got a bottle ready for him for when he wakes up. How are things there?"

"Everything is good," Ashleigh replied. "We're all just waiting to see the baby but I think I'm going to head on into the nursery to see Maddison and see if I can sneak a peek."

"You're such a bad girl," Beaver joked.

"I know," Ashleigh replied with a laugh. "I'll be home soon though. I know this is probably a lot longer than you had anticipated being alone with Matt."

"It is," Beaver replied. "But everything is alright and I know you need to be there for Casey so take your time. Matt and I will be here when you get home."

"OK, I'll talk to you later honey," said Ashleigh.

"Bye," said Beaver as he hung up the phone and set it on the counter.

As if on cue Matt began to fuss a little. Beaver took the bottle and walked over and picked him up out of the swing.

"Hey buddy," he said as he sat down in one of the recliner chairs. "Daddy has a bottle for you."

Beaver positioned the baby and began giving him the bottle which Matthew happily began to suck on. Beaver smiled as he looked down at his son. He was still in shock that he and Maddison were actually a part of him.

A few minutes later Matthew finished the bottle and Beaver decided to change his diaper again. He set Matthew down and made sure he had all the necessary supplies before beginning.

"Fool me once, shame on me, fool me twice, shame on you," he playfully said to Matthew hoping to avoid getting peed on like he had the day before.

The diaper change went down without a hitch and Beaver set Matthew back into the swing where he instantly fell back asleep. Beaver stood there with his hands on his hips and looked around the house.

"Everyone was right," he said with a sigh. "All you do is eat, sleep and do your bodily functions."

As Beaver scanned the room he caught eye of the video camera on the counter and remembered he hadn't made his video for Cappie's project to save the Greek system yet. He realized he didn't have anything better to do at the moment since Matthew was sleeping and set it up so he could record his video and just give it to Cappie to add to the final project when he put all the videos together.

Beaver set the camera up on the kitchen table and sat in one of the kitchen chairs. He pressed record and began.

"Hello my name is Charles Thompson but everyone really just knows me as the Beaver," he began. "It's actually a funny nickname that I got from my Kappa Tau brothers during rush my freshman year of college. Apparently when I get a little drunk I like to chew on some wood so that's what got me my nickname. At first I thought it would just be something the brothers would call me occasionally and eventually would be forgotten about. But honestly, my brothers, my friends and even my wife still call me Beaver to this day. I like the name, it kind of gives me my own unique identity and it's always a good conversation starter when I tell people I meet for the first time that my name is Beaver." Beaver paused to let out a small laugh. "Anyway, besides giving me my nickname, the Kappa Tau fraternity has given me several other things that have shaped me into the person that I am today. I actually went to CRU to play football and I was good at it but after a few weeks I got really intimidated by the other players on the team. They were doing an awesome job managing football, classes and partying and I was having a hard time keeping up. I let most of my brothers think I dropped out of football to party but Cappie was one person who I confided in the most and one of the few who know the truth. He was one of my pledge brothers and quickly became one of my best friends. He's always been there for me and I really trust and respect him. I told him about my dilemma about football versus everything else in my life and he really made me see the big picture. I wasn't planning on going into the NFL or anything like that; I knew I wasn't good enough for it. He helped me see that dropping out of football wasn't the end of the world for me and that I had better things to look forward to in my life."

Beaver paused for dramatic effect and then continued.

"During most of my college years I was known as kind of dumb and un-ambitious and I think the whole Kappa Tau fraternity was viewed in that way. I'm not really sure why we kept our image like that but really deep down we are some really smart guys. It was easy in college to pretend like I didn't have much of a focus and didn't care but I learned quickly in the real world that it's not the same. I am a chef and now am co-owner of two of the top restaurants in the Chicago area. And as if you didn't know, Cappie is the other co-owner. It's amazing how our relationship as brothers extended way beyond the college years. At any rate, Kappa Tau really helped me become the person that I am today. Without meeting Cappie and joining the fraternity I probably would have stuck with football hoping to make some sort of career out of it. I definitely wouldn't be as successful as I am today."

Beaver paused for another dramatic effect; he thought they really added to the emotion of the video.

"I guess lastly I just want to tell you that I became a dad a few days ago to twins. I have a boy named Matthew and a girl named Maddison. And while I don't have their futures planned out and I'm not even sure if they will go to CRU when they get that age, I want them to have the chance to become a part of the Greek system. I want them to be able to form those lasting friendships that not only got me through my college years but extended throughout adulthood. I wouldn't trade my time at Kappa Tau for anything. I had a blast in college and still graduated in four years like everyone else. The Greek system doesn't corrupt students, the Greek system helps students. I hope my story will be one more to help you really see that when making your final decision."

Beaver stopped for just a second to think if he wanted to add anything more but Matthew woke up and began to fuss again.

"That's my son," he said staring into the camera again. "He's crying because he doesn't want to see the Greek system go away just like his daddy. Remember this cry and the future students at CRU when deciding what to do. Think of the babies and the children. You don't want to let them down and make them cry do you?" Beaver let out a little laugh. "I'm just kidding….sort of."

And with that Beaver stood up, turned off the camera and then went over to tend to Matthew.

* * *

Cappie quickly made his way down the hallway, through the doors and into the waiting room.

"Daddy! Is it my turn?" Cadence exclaimed as soon as she saw him walk in.

"It sure is," Cappie replied with a smile.

Cadence ran up to him as fast as she could and jumped into his arms.

"Let's go!" she shouted.

Everyone in the waiting room laughed at her enthusiasm.

"Give us a few minutes and I'll be back to get the rest of you guys," said Cappie as he turned around and headed back through the doors to the labor and delivery wing.

"Is mommy all better?" Cadence asked he carried her down the hallway.

"Mommy is still a little sick," Cappie replied. "She has a boo boo on her tummy but she's much better than what she was."

"I'll kiss her boo boo," said Cadence as she made a smacking noise with her lips.

"We are going to leave mommy's boo boo alone," said Cappie. "But you can kiss her on the face all you want and you can even give your baby brother a kiss too."

"But daddy, he's a boy," said Cadence innocently.

Cappie chuckled. "He's your brother sweetheart," he said as he brushed her hair away from her neck. "He's a boy that you're allowed to kiss."

"OK," said Cadence who would trust anything her dad told her at this point.

"But you do have to be careful with the baby," Cappie added as he stopped outside of Casey's door and looked at Cadence. "The baby is very small and fragile. You have to treat him as well as you treat your favorite baby doll."

"Can he sleep with me at night too?" Cadence asked.

"No, he has to sleep in the crib for right now," said Cappie trying not to laugh too much at her question.

"OK daddy," Cadence replied.

Cappie kissed her on the cheek as he opened the door to Casey's room and walked inside.

"There's my favorite little girl," said Casey as soon as she saw them.

"Hi mommy!" said Cadence.

Cappie walked right next to Casey's bed and normally Cadence would jump right out of his arms and onto the bed but he could tell she was a little afraid.

"Cadence, this is your brother Caleb," said Casey as she lifted Caleb slightly in her arms so Cadence could see him.

"Hi," said Cadence softly as she moved further back into Cappie's arms, unsure of how close she was actually able to get to the new baby.

"Sweetheart, there is nothing to be scared of," said Cappie sensing Cadence was afraid of what to do. "Why don't you sit on the edge of mommy's bed so you can get closer?"

Cappie could feel Cadence tense up a little as he took her out of his arms and set her on the edge of Casey's bed. Cappie then pulled up a chair and sat down so he could stay as close to Cadence as he could in case she needed him.

Casey watched as Cadence slowly took her hand and reached out towards the baby but quickly pulled it away.

"It's alright sweetie, you can touch him," said Casey as she positioned Caleb so he was closer to Cadence.

Cadence slowly brought her hand back up to touch the blanket that Caleb was wrapped in near his foot. She then moved her hand up to touch his cheek.

"He has fat cheeks," she said as she looked up at Casey.

"Most babies have big cheeks like he does," said Casey. "Even you did but you grew out of them."

"I did?" Cadence asked.

"You sure did," said Casey. "You were just about as small as he is when you were born too."

"No way!" Cadence asked in a disbelieving voice.

"It's true," said Cappie. "But you certainly have grown a lot since you were his size."

"Does he talk?" Cadence asked.

"No, not yet," Cappie replied as he rested his arms on the bed around Cadence. "He can only cry and make little sounds with his mouth."

Cadence took her hand away and set it in her lap with her other hand.

"Is he sleeping?" Cadence asked.

"Probably," Cappie replied. "But since he just came out of mommy's tummy he doesn't open his eyes a whole lot yet because of the bright lights."

"Well turn off the light then," said Cadence as she turned to look at Cappie.

"It's alright, we don't have to do that," said Cappie with a small smile at Cadence's response. "He'll open his eyes more as he gets used to it."

"Mommy, when can you come home?" Cadence asked as she looked back at Casey.

"In a few days," Casey replied. "I have to stay here for a little bit so the doctors can make sure everything is alright."

Cappie turned to look at Casey who met his eyes. They smiled at each other. "It's kind of neat having our family here together," he said.

"It is," Casey replied.

"Here, why don't I take Caleb from you so Cadence can give you a hug?" asked Cappie.

"OK," Casey replied as Cappie stood up and took Caleb out of her arms and sat back down in the chair.

"I'm ready for my hug," said Casey as she held her arms open wide.

Cadence scooted closer to the head of the bed and wrapped her arms around Casey's neck.

"I miss you mommy," she said squeezing tightly.

"I've missed you too sweetie," said Casey as she wrapped her arms around Cadence and fought hard to fight the tears from coming down her cheeks. "But everything is going to get better real soon. I promise."

"Does your boo boo hurt?" Cadence asked as she backed away.

"No, the doctors gave me some medicine to make it feel better," Casey replied.

Cadence looked down towards Casey's stomach.

"It's smaller," she said as she gently rubbed it with her hand.

"That's because Caleb isn't in there anymore," said Casey. "He was taking up a lot of room wasn't he?"

"Yeah," said Cadence as she took her hand away and turned towards Cappie. "Daddy, can I hold the baby?" she asked.

"You sure can," said Cappie. "But I might have to help you until you get the hang of it OK?"

"OK," said Cadence as a smile grew on her face.

"Go ahead and sit down in the chair," said Casey as Cappie stood up and Cadence took his place.

"Scoot all the way to the side so you're near the armrest," said Cappie directing Cadence in what to do.

Cadence did as she was instructed and put her arms in position just like she would hold one of her baby dolls at home. Cappie then knelt down in front of her and set Caleb in her lap, making sure he kept his hand on Caleb's head to support it.

"Look mommy! I'm doing it!" Cadence exclaimed as she looked up at Casey.

"You sure are," said Casey smiling at the sight in front of her and couldn't help but let a few tears of happiness escape her eyes.

"He's heavier than my dolls," said Cadence as she turned to look down at Caleb in her arms.

Just then Caleb let out a little coo and opened his eyes just a little.

"Hi, I'm your sister," said Cadence continuing to look at him. "My name is Cadence."

Caleb let out another little coo.

"I think he likes you," said Cappie as he smiled at Cadence. "He didn't make this much noise when mommy or I held him."

"He really likes me?" Cadence asked as she looked up at Cappie.

"Of course," Cappie replied as he patted her knee with his free hand. "He's lucky to have such a great sister like you."

"Mommy, are you crying?" Cadence asked as she looked up at Casey.

"Sorry," said Casey with a smile as she wiped her tears. "This is just a moment that I've dreamed of seeing for so long and I'm just so happy that it's finally here. Seeing you hold your baby brother shows me how grown up you're becoming."

"Am I doing OK?" Cadence asked as she turned to look at Cappie.

"It's perfect," Cappie replied.

"Can I give him a kiss now?" Cadence asked.

"Sure," Cappie replied.

Cadence slowly lowered her head down and gave Caleb one of her patented wide open mouth kisses on his cheek.

"Oh my gosh, that is so cute," said Casey as she rested her head back down on her pillow. "I wish I had my camera."

"I'm sure we'll have plenty of other moments to capture over the next several years," said Cappie as he smiled up at Casey.

Cadence sat there for a few more minutes just looking at Caleb and thinking how cool it was to have a real life baby doll.

"Daddy," she said eventually looking at Cappie with a worried look.

"What's wrong?" Cappie asked.

Cadence motioned for Cappie to get a little closer to her. "My hand tingles," she whispered to him thinking what was happening to her was a bad thing.

Cappie chuckled. "It's OK," he said. "I'll take Caleb and give your arm a little break."

Cappie picked Caleb back up out of Cadence's arms and watched as she moved her arm around to try to get it to stop tingling.

"It feels funny," she said.

"It will go away soon," said Cappie. "Just give it some time."

"What happened?" Cadence asked.

"Having the heavy baby on your arm made it get like that," Cappie replied with a small laugh at the way Cadence was responding to her hand falling asleep for the first time.

Cadence continued to move her arm around when she turned and looked up at Casey.

"Daddy," she whispered as she pointed up at Casey. "I think mommy is sleeping."

Cappie turned to look at Casey who was fast asleep in the bed.

"Let's go back out to the waiting room and let mommy sleep," Cappie whispered.

"OK," Cadence also whispered as she took Cappie's free hand and the two of them walked out the door and to the waiting room to greet everyone with the new baby.

* * *

_**A/N: So I hope everyone sees that I've posted this new chapter eventually...I've been getting my fanfiction e-mails like a day later than they are supposed to come for some reason. Not sure if it's my e-mail or the whole system but nonetheless the new chapter is up :0) I hope you guys liked the cute Cappie/Casey/Cadence moments that I wrote. I just think it's so cute with the four of them as a family now...hehe. Sorry it took me a little while to get this chapter up...I had a hard time getting it started and figuring out exactly what I wanted to do. Please review and let me know what you think!**_


	155. Closer

CLOSER

The next morning Casey was finally able to get out of bed and sit up in a chair for a little while. The process of sitting up in the chair almost felt weird to her since she hadn't done it in so long. She was still quite sore from the c-section but she knew the pain would get better as things began to heal. Caleb was in the bassinette sleeping next to her and Cappie was taking advantage of Casey not being in the bed and took it upon himself to lay in it instead.

"You know, this bed is not as comfortable as it looks," said Cappie as he moved around trying to get comfortable.

"I could have told you that," said Casey with a small laugh.

There was a knock at the door and Dr. Snyder walked in.

"Hello!" she exclaimed as she walked in. "How is everyone doing today?"

"Great now that I'm finally able to get out of that bed," Casey replied.

"And how is our newest Cappington?" Dr. Snyder asked as she went over and looked at Caleb.

"He's doing well," Casey replied. "He's been taking all his bottles and sleeping like all babies do."

"Yeah, I looked at all his vital signs he had in the nursery and they were all completely normal," Dr. Snyder replied. "For being a few weeks early he's doing exceptionally well."

"So when can we blow this popsicle stand?" Cappie asked as he smiled at Dr. Snyder.

"As long as everything continues to be OK I would say tomorrow would be a safe bet," Dr. Snyder replied. "I'll want to see you in a week so we can take the staples out of your incision and then you should be good to go."

"Thank you for everything Dr. Snyder," said Casey. "This has sure been a crazy time and you're wisdom and support has really been essential to where we are today."

"You're very welcome," said Dr. Snyder as she smiled at Casey. "So I have to ask, am I going to be seeing you again after I take those staples out next week?"

Cappie and Casey looked at each other and smiled. "The answer to that question is still kind of up in the air," Casey replied. "But if another baby is in the works you'll be one of the first people on our list to visit."

"I can live with that answer," Dr. Snyder said with a smile. "I'll check in again tomorrow to sign your discharge papers. In the meantime try to go on some walks and get your strength back up OK?"

"Not a problem," Cappie replied for Casey. "You know I'll be on her."

"Yes, I have no doubts that you will," Dr. Snyder said with a small laugh as she walked out of the room.

Once she left Cappie sat up on the edge of the bed. "Did I tell you I got a call from your mom this morning?" Cappie asked.

"No, something wrong?" Casey asked.

"Everything's fine," Cappie replied. "I guess Cadence was just asking when she could come back and see her brother again."

Casey let out a small laugh. "I guess she really likes the little guy huh?" she asked.

"Yeah, and it will be even better once we are all home and together again," said Cappie.

"Sure will," Casey replied.

The two of them sat in silence for a bit until another knock at the door interrupted them. Cappie's mom and dad walked in.

"Dad! You made it!" said Cappie as he went over and gave Tobias a hug.

"Sorry I'm a little late," he said as he backed away from Cappie. "Someone just had to have the baby a little earlier than I had planned," he joked as he looked over at Casey.

"Sorry about that," said Casey with a smile.

"How are you dear?" Mr. Cappington asked as he gave Casey a hug.

"I'm doing well," Casey replied. "It's so good to have you here."

"And is this my grandson?" Mr. Cappington asked as he looked down at Caleb in the bassinette.

"This is Caleb," said Cappie as he walked over to him. "You can go ahead and hold him if you want."

Tobias reached down and gently picked Caleb up from the bassinette and brought him into his arms. He touched the side of his cheek and leaned down and gave him a kiss.

"Wow Cap, two kids now huh?" Tobias asked as he sat down in a chair with Caleb still in his arms.

"Yeah, who would have thought?" said Cappie as he sat down next to Casey.

"You certainly proved everything wrong your mom and I ever planned for you," said Tobias. "Not that it's a bad thing; it's just weird to see how different things are."

"I guess it goes to show how meeting the perfect girl can change your life," said Cappie as he put his arm around Casey and smiled at her.

"We are so proud of both of you," said Mrs. Cappington as she sat next to Tobias. "Cappie might not be an astronaut like we thought, but he's sure made a great life for himself."

"You pictured me as an astronaut?" Cappie asked in a little shock.

"Something adventurous like that," Tobias replied. "Growing up at camp you were always into something so we just assumed you would be like that as an adult."

"But regardless of what we thought, you are an amazing father Cap," said April. "Spending these past couple of weeks with Cadence has really showed me that. She really adores and looks up to you like a hero."

"Thanks mom, that really means a lot to me," said Cappie.

"I'm not sure if Cappie has had a chance to tell you yet Casey but Tobias and I are thinking about settling down and moving to the Chicago area so we can be near our grandchildren," said April.

"Really?" Casey asked with a look of shock on her face.

"Yup," Tobias replied. "We're getting a little older and it's time for the two of us to stop acting like we're in our twenties. We've always kind of put family on the back burner in our lives and with this new little guy here I want to change that."

"Wow, that's really great of you guys," said Casey. "I'm sure both Cadence and Caleb will be very happy to have you around. And I'm sure Cappie will too."

"Of course," said Cappie. "It'll probably be a little weird at first," he said with a nervous laugh. "But I'm sure we'll get the hang of it."

Another knock came at the door interrupting their conversation. Ashleigh walked in carrying Maddison in her arms.

"Oh, I'm sorry," said Ashleigh. "I didn't know your parents were here Cap."

"It's alright Ash, you can come in," said Cappie.

"Yeah, get over here, I want to see that baby," said Casey motioning for Ashleigh to come over.

Ashleigh walked over to Casey and put Maddison in her arms.

"I just stopped in for a second," said Ashleigh. "The doctors said Maddison is doing well and will probably be able to go home tomorrow."

"That's great news Ash," said Casey.

"Yeah, and Casey and Caleb might be going home tomorrow too," Cappie added.

"So I take it Caleb is doing alright?" Ashleigh asked as she looked over at Cappie's dad holding Caleb.

"My grandson is doing just fine," said Tobias with a smile as he kissed Caleb on the cheek.

"How's Beav doing?" Cappie asked.

"Just fine," Ashleigh replied. "It's his turn to come up here this afternoon after I get back home so I'm sure he'll stop in and see you guys."

"Are you guys doing OK with the whole back and forth thing?" Casey asked.

"It's been challenging," Ashleigh replied. "But hopefully after tomorrow we won't have to be doing it anymore so things will be able to be a little more normal."

"I'm sure things will be much better once we are all home," said Casey as she smiled at Ashleigh.

"Where's Cadence?" Ashleigh asked when she realized Cadence wasn't there.

"She's still with Casey's parents," Cappie replied. "They'll bring her by this afternoon sometime."

"Well I hate to make this short but I really should get Maddie back to the nursery," said Ashleigh.

"Promise me we'll have a play date soon once everyone gets home?" said Casey as she handed Maddison back to Ashleigh.

"Definitely," Ashleigh replied. "I'll see you guys later."

"Bye Ash," said Cappie as he watched her walk out of the room.

"How cool is it that your best friends have babies around the same time you do?" Mrs. Cappington asked with a smile.

"It is pretty cool," Casey replied. "I think the kids are going to have a lot of fun growing up together."

Just then there was another knock at the door.

"Hello, hello!" said Rebecca as her and Evan walked into the room.

"My room has certainly been busy today hasn't it?" said Casey as she waved to Rebecca and Evan.

"We can go if you guys were in the middle of something," said Evan.

"No, it's alright," said Cappie. "Come join us."

"Actually, we haven't had any lunch yet so we'll head down to the cafeteria and let you guys have some time," said April.

"Aw, do we have to?" Tobias whined as he looked down at Caleb.

"You'll have plenty of time to spend with your grandson over the next several years," said April as she stared at Tobias. "We can come back after we're done."

"OK," he said reluctantly as he stood up. "Do one of you want to hold him or do you want me to put him back in the bassinette?"

"You can put him back in the bassinette since he's still sleeping," said Casey. "He should be ready for a bottle in the next half hour or so anyway."

"See you later little guy," said Tobias as he kissed Caleb and put him in the bassinette. "We'll see you guys later."

"Bye dad," said Cappie as he watched the two of them walk out of the room.

"So what are you guys up to today?" Casey asked as Evan and Rebecca took the seats where April and Tobias were sitting.

"We went downtown this morning and had some breakfast and just walked around for a little bit," said Rebecca. "Evan then got a call that he needs to be back at the office tomorrow."

"Oh, bummer," said Casey as she rolled her bottom lip out at Evan. "I thought you were off all week."

"I was," said Evan with a sigh. "But my boss' father just passed away so they begged me to come back because they need the help."

"And of course Evan has to come to the rescue," said Rebecca who didn't sound happy about the situation.

"It's OK, at least you guys were able to be here to meet Caleb," said Cappie.

"I just wish Evan could grow some balls once in a while and say no to his job for once," said Rebecca.

"I'm sorry Rebecca but we've already been over this," said Evan glaring at Rebecca.

"Hey guys, it's really not a big deal," said Casey. "I don't want any fighting so can we just let things go for right now? Evan can do whatever he needs to do."

"Fine," said Rebecca with a deep breath.

"Well then," said Cappie after a short silence in the room. "Since you guys are leaving, how about doing your segments for the Greek video I'm putting together?"

"Yeah, we can do that," said Evan. "Where do you want us to go?"

"Actually I'll just have you do your videos one at a time so whoever wants to go first can come with me," said Cappie as he stood up.

"I'll go first," said Rebecca as she stood up and walked towards Cappie.

"Alright, follow me then," said Cappie as he walked out of the room with Rebecca.

The two walked part of the way down the hall in silence.

"You really shouldn't be hard on Evan like that," Cappie finally said as he turned to look at Rebecca. "He's really just doing the best he can."

"I know he is," said Rebecca. "I'm just bummed because I was having so much fun here hanging out with all of you guys. I'm not ready to leave yet."

"Well you guys did drive separately," said Cappie. "You could always stay with us for a while if you want."

"No, I don't want to impose or anything," said Rebecca. "It's probably best I get back anyway."

"Suit yourself," said Cappie as he walked into the conference room.

"You don't think I'm being too much of a bitch to Evan do you?" Rebecca asked as Cappie began to set up the camera.

"I really don't want to answer that," said Cappie avoiding having to look at Rebecca.

"Oh come on Cap, you've never been afraid to tell me how you really feel before," said Rebecca. "Lay it on me."

Cappie took a deep breath as he looked up at Rebecca. "I just think Evan has been through a lot in his life when it comes to his parents and dropping out of law school and jobs that you've kinds of been the one constant that holds him together. I'm just afraid if the two of you start to argue, he's not going to know where to turn."

Rebecca looked away from Cappie and towards the window. "I hate when you're right you know that?" she said as she put her hands on her hips.

"Yeah, I know," said Cappie as he smiled at Rebecca.

Rebecca just smiled back at him as she sat down in the chair in front of the camera.

"All you have to do is press the record button and talk, which is something you've never had a problem doing," said Cappie with a small laugh.

"Hey, be nice," said Rebecca as she playfully hit Cappie on the arm.

"I'll be waiting outside, just let me know when you're done," said Cappie as he opened the door and walked out of the room.

Rebecca quickly pressed record and smiled at the camera.

"Hi, I'm Rebecca Chambers, formerly Rebecca Logan," she began. "I'm supposed to sit here and tell you why I joined the Greek system and how much it means to be but the truth is, I'm not really sure why I wanted to join a sorority in the first place when I began at CRU. I guess it was just something that sounded like a good idea, something I could become my own person with rather than a senator's daughter. Unfortunately, being a senator's daughter made rush a little unbearable. Every sorority on campus wanted me and they would do just about anything for me to get me to join theirs. In the end there was something about Zeta Beta Zeta that intrigued me. The girls were friendly and they were of course the best sorority on campus. I wasn't really the model pledge in the beginning though. I've never been known as the 'wild child' but being in college kind of let that side of me out. I wasn't always the nicest to my sisters, especially Casey."

Rebecca sank her head down to look towards the floor for a bit. When she looked up her eyes were noticeably watery.

"There's really no need to go into everything that happened with Casey and me," she continued. "But she really showed me what sisterhood means. There was a point when I was going to be kicked out of the sorority because of some antics I got into during spring break. Casey and I weren't really friends at the time but for some reason she stood up to the national board for me and because of that, I was able to stay in the sorority. Prior to that I thought this whole sisterhood thing was sort of a joke and just a perception that the sororities put on. But in the end I could count on my sisters for support during some of the roughest times in my life."

Rebecca reached up and wiped a tear that was falling down her cheek.

"Man, I can't believe I'm crying," she said with a nervous laugh. "I guess I should tell you that today Casey is one of my best friends. She was a bridesmaid in my wedding and even though we live in different states, we still see each other whenever we get the chance. We've really come a long way from petty sorority politics to experiencing life as adults. There's also Ashleigh who is another one of my best friends today. I think during college the two of us were a little closer than Casey and I were but Ashleigh kept her guard up when it came to me because she was Casey's best friend first. My senior year I became president of ZBZ and that experience really changed my life also. Being president gave me a chance to develop my leadership skills and help become someone more than a senator's daughter. Sure, some people today still know me only by my dad but I really think my experience with the sorority helped me become my own person. I'm now married to Evan Chambers and the two of us have a great life together. We fit really well together because we both grew up in the public eye and know what it's like to search for that independence away from our parents. Even though things start out rocky with just about every aspect of my life, I wouldn't change any of that for the world. Because of being in the Greek system I have met some of my best friends, married the man of my dreams and became someone other than a senator's daughter. If the Greek system can help someone with so many aspects of their life, I don't know why on earth you would want to get rid of it. I would be very upset and sad to see it go away so please keep the system alive. Thanks."

Rebecca pressed stop on the camera and sat back down in the chair. She wiped away a few more tears that had streamed down her face. She was a little shocked that she was so emotional in the video. But talking about her experience and touching on so many things from friendships to her relationship with her dad to Evan kind of just let everything go she was holding onto. It really made her feel good about herself and the person that she was today.

She pulled out her compact and made sure her make-up wasn't smeared all over her face before she opened the door to find Cappie standing closer than she expected. He just smiled at her.

"What?" Rebecca asked.

"I heard you crying in there," said Cappie.

"No I didn't, I just got a few sniffles," said Rebecca as she began walking back towards Casey's room.

"If you say so," said Cappie following her. "I'll just see it for myself when I do the final editing."

Rebecca stopped in her tracks and felt Cappie come beside her and put his arm around her shoulders.

"OK, so maybe I was crying," she said as she turned to look at him briefly.

Cappie just wrapped his arms around her as she buried her head in his shoulder.

"It's alright Bex," he said as he rubbed his hand up and down her back.

The two of them stood there for a few more seconds before Rebecca backed away.

"Thanks Cap," she said as she wiped away a few more tears that had escaped her eyes. "I didn't think I would get so emotional."

"I think it's good," said Cappie as they began to walk back down the hall. "It gives the executive board a chance to see how much the Greek system really means to you."

"Yeah," said Rebecca with a sigh.

"Now if we can just get old Evie-poo to cry we'll be all set," said Cappie with a laugh.

Rebecca let out a small laugh also as they walked into Casey's room.

"Hey guys," said Casey who was giving Caleb a bottle. "How did it go?"

"It went alright," said Rebecca. "I guess it's your turn now Ev."

"I tried to get him to give Caleb the bottle but he refused," said Casey as she looked over towards Evan.

"Hey, I needed to make time for this speech," said Evan. "Maybe the next time."

"Right," said Cappie as he rolled his eyes. "Let's go Ev."

Evan stood up and followed Cappie out of the room.

"So what has everyone been saying on this thing?" Evan asked as the two men walked down the hall.

"Just about their experiences with the Greek system and how it shaped them to be the person that they are today," Cappie replied. "Some have been really detailed, others have been shorter. You can do whatever you want."

"Sounds easy enough," said Evan as the two of them walked into the room.

Cappie showed Evan how to use the camera and left the room. Evan pressed record on the camera and got right down to business.

"I'm Evan Chambers," he began. "I am a member of Omega Chi Delta. I have a unique story when it comes to rushing fraternities because I actually rushed two. You see, I came to school as sort of a rebel. I had been to all the best private schools and had to have this image of a 'good boy' growing up because of the Chambers name that I had. So I started college and decided to rush a fraternity. At first I rushed Kappa Tau Gamma with my best friend and roommate Cappie because they were the fraternity I wanted to fit into. They were the slackers who partied and just had a fun time with college. But when I found out I was only a pledge because I was friends with Cappie, I dropped out. As much as I wanted to be the slacker and rebel against my parents, that wasn't who I was; Omega Chi is who I was. They were the best fraternity on campus and they offered all kinds of connections and benefits that Kappa Tau didn't. I guess I was sort of kidding myself thinking that I would be able to fit in to Kappa Tau. In the end I did feel like I made the best choice. I met some really good friends because of the fraternity and the alumnae connections helped me become a more independent person away from my parents. I love the fraternity and I still visit every year for any alumnae events they have and sometimes I just drop by the house to check in and see how they are doing. I plan on developing an internship with my business in the next couple of years so I can have a few Omega Chi brothers who are studying business get some experience over the summer. But I obviously won't be able to do this if Omega Chi doesn't exist anymore so please keep the Greek system around. It's helped me a lot and I want to be able to give the same thing back to the brothers who are there today."

And with that Evan shut the camera off and walked back out into the hallway.

"Whoa, that was quick," said Cappie as he saw Evan and walked over to him.

"Yeah, short and sweet," Evan replied.

"I'm kind of surprised," said Cappie. "I thought yours would be one of the longest with everything that has happened with me and you and Casey."

"I thought about going into all of that," said Evan. "But then I realized that it really wasn't the fraternities that caused our friendship to go up and down. Sure the pranks and everything happened between the houses but our friendship really ended because of our interest in the same girl."

"Yeah, you have a point," said Cappie.

"And it was the Amphora Society that brought us back together so I couldn't really attribute that to the Greek system either," Evan added. "So in the end there wasn't really a whole lot to talk about."

"I thought the Greek system meant a lot to you," Cappie questioned.

"I thought it did too," Evan replied. "But when I sat in Casey's room thinking about what I was going to say, I realized that maybe it wasn't as great as I thought. My brothers hated me after I gave up my trust fund and I had to do things I really didn't want to do to prove my loyalty to them. Omega Chi was good for a few friendships like I have with Calvin and the alumnae connections but after that I couldn't think of much else."

"Wow, I guess I never thought of it like that but I can see your point," said Cappie. "I hope you didn't make that known on the tape though."

"Of course not," said Evan with a small laugh. "I talked about the positive things and how I plan on helping out in the future if they keep it around."

"That's good," said Cappie. "Thanks for doing that."

"No problem," said Evan with a smile. "But we should get back to the room because Rebecca and I really need to get going."

"I tried to talk her into giving you a little slack about going to work tomorrow," said Cappie as they began to walk down the hall. "So hopefully the ride home won't be too bad."

"Oh I don't think that's going to be a problem," said Evan with a smile.

Cappie stopped and gave him a strange look. "Is there something going on here that I don't know?" he asked.

"I never got a call from my work," said Evan as he stopped next to Cappie. "I'm actually surprising Rebecca with a little get-a-way to Miami for a few days."

"Really?" Cappie asked. "That's awesome."

"I think it's something that the two of us really need," said Evan. "I have been really busy with work and I know she's been missing me so I'm hoping to win a few points back by doing this."

"She's going to be so excited," said Cappie.

"Our flight leaves from O'Hare in three hours so we really need to get going," said Evan. "I hope you can help me get her out of here."

"Not a problem," said Cappie with a smile.

* * *

_**A/N: Hello :0) Sorry it's taken me a few days to update. I actually went out of town to Chicago this weekend. It was kind of funny reading a lot of the signs and things around the city and see some of the cities and things that I put in this story since it's based in the Chicago area. Anyway, sorry the chapter wasn't too exciting. I'm still just trying to wrap up a few loose ends in the story before wrapping it all up. I promise the next chapter will have a lot more Cappie and Casey interaction for those of you reading the story for the two of them :0) Please keep the reviews up and welcome to a couple of the new readers that have come along! It's always exciting to hear from new readers :0)**_


	156. Where I Belong

WHERE I BELONG

The next day Casey was happily packing her things up at the hospital because it was finally time for her to go home. Dr. Snyder had been earlier to give her the good news that both her and Caleb were doing very well and OK to go home. Cappie had left the hospital for a little bit so all she had to do is wait until he came back to pick them up and they would be on their way.

She continued to shove things into her bag, wondering how she had accumulated so much stuff over the past couple of weeks. Caleb laid in his bassinette next to her bed sleeping soundly. Casey had already dressed him in his outfit to go home which was a blue jumpsuit with a lamb on the front of it. She walked over and looked at him and smiled as she reached down and touched his cheek. He completed her life in a way she never thought was possible. She couldn't be happier to finally be able to go home and be a full and functioning family.

"Are you up to one last visitor?" said someone walking into the room.

"Eleanor!" Casey exclaimed as she looked up at her. "Of course I'm always up to a visit from you!"

Eleanor walked in as Casey walked over to her and gave her a hug.

"It's so good to see you in such better spirits dear," said Eleanor as she backed away from Casey.

"I know, it's amazing how things can change for the better so quickly," said Casey.

"Patience is the greatest of all virtues my dear," said Eleanor. "I knew you would get to this point, it was just a matter of waiting a little bit for the time to come."

"Well this little guy didn't want to wait anymore," said Casey as she walked over to Caleb's bassinette. "And he sure wanted to make a grand entrance."

Eleanor let out a small laugh. "Are you feeling OK from the surgery?" she asked.

"Yeah, it's still a little sore," Casey replied. "But the doctor prescribed me some pain medicine so that helps take the edge off."

"Can I hold him?" Eleanor asked as she walked over towards Caleb.

"Of course you can," Casey replied as she picked Caleb up and handed him to Eleanor.

"Oh my, this brings me back to holding my children at this age," said Eleanor as she rocked Caleb back and forth. "They are all so grown up now I forgot they were even this small."

"I know, I thought the same thing about Cadence," said Casey. "It's hard to believe she was this small too. But I'll never forget the feeling of holding her for the first time."

"Oh you'll never forget the feeling of holding your children for the first time," said Eleanor. "It's one of those experiences you hold onto for the rest of your life."

Casey smiled at Eleanor and watched as she leaned down and gave Caleb a kiss on the cheek.

"You know you're already like his honorary grandma," said Casey. "He's been a little fussy when people other than Cappie and I hold him but he's doing just fine with you."

"I guess I just have that magic touch," said Eleanor as she laid Caleb back down into the bassinette. "But you know I won't turn down another grandchild in my life. I've obtained quite a few since meeting you."

Casey let out a little laugh. "Sorry granny," she said. "I can't help it if my family is just drawn to you."

"Well you have a beautiful family Casey," said Eleanor as she smiled.

"Thanks," said Casey. "I really hope you join us for dinner sometime soon. I know Cadence would love to see you again."

"You have my number dear," said Eleanor. "I'm sure we'll get together very soon."

"Once I get things settled at home I'll be sure to set something up," said Casey.

"Sounds good," said Eleanor.

There was a brief pause in the conversation as both ladies smiled at each other.

"So are you just starting your shift or ending it?" Casey asked.

"I just arrived," Eleanor replied. "I figured I would see you first because I wasn't sure how much longer you were going to be here."

"I'm glad you saw me first," said Casey. "Because as soon as Cappie gets here we are gone. Everyone has been so nice here but it's time for me to go."

"I understand," said Eleanor. "I should probably get going also. One of my lady friends just had a heart attack and is recovering on the fourth floor. I want to spend some time with her."

"You go ahead," said Casey as the two ladies began to walk to the door. "I'll be sure to call you so we can set up a time for dinner."

The two of them reached the door when Eleanor turned and reached for Casey's hand.

"You are such a strong woman Casey," she began. "And as I said, you have a beautiful family. Don't take anything in life for granted because you never know when something will happen. Always remember to live freely and laugh often. And make sure to leave plenty of time for that handsome husband of yours. He's quite the catch," Eleanor said as she winked at Casey.

"He is," said Casey with a smile. "And I'll take those words to heart granny. You've done so much for me over these past few months. I don't know how I could begin to repay you."

"You owe me nothing dear," said Eleanor as she squeezed Casey's hand. "You have opened your heart and your family up to me and that is more important than anything you could repay me with. When Stan passed I really felt so alone but you've managed to keep my sense of family alive and for that I am ever grateful."

"Oh now you're going to make me cry," said Casey with a sniffle as she wiped away a tear falling from her eye.

"Now no tears needed my dear," said Eleanor. "This is certainly not goodbye; it's just see you later."

"I know," said Casey with a nod. "I love you granny."

"And I love you too sweetheart," said Eleanor as she let go of Casey's hand and gave her a hug.

Eleanor kissed Casey's cheek as they each backed away.

"I guess I'll see you later then huh?" Casey asked as she wiped another tear from her cheek.

"You sure will," said Eleanor with one last pat on Casey's shoulder before she left the room.

* * *

The afternoon came quickly and Casey was still waiting patiently for Cappie to pick her up. A part of her was starting to get a little nervous as she hadn't heard from him in a while but she didn't want to bother him so she continued to wait. She spent her time feeding Caleb, talking with Ashleigh who had come to pick up Maddison, watching some daytime television and gabbing with a few of her favorite nurses. She was lying in bed watching some television when her phone rang. She reached for it quickly hoping it would be Cappie but was a little disappointed that it wasn't.

"Ash, didn't I just talk with you like a half an hour ago?" Casey asked as she answered the phone.

"Yes," said Ashleigh with a little giggle. "I just wanted to let you know that we made it home OK and see if Cappie had made it there yet."

"No, not yet," said Casey with a sigh. "I know he said he had to get some things in order back at the house but I didn't think it was going to take this long."

"Maybe he's planning a big surprise welcome home party for you," said Ashleigh.

"Well, he is?" Casey asked knowing that Beaver or Ashleigh would certainly know if something like that was being planned.

"No, not that I know of," said Ashleigh defeated. "I was just trying to find some excuse to make his tardiness better."

"It's OK Ash, I know he'll be here soon," said Casey. "So how is it having both of the babies home now?"

"It's been fine for now," Ashleigh replied. "They are both sleeping but I'm sure we're in for some fun once they both wake up."

"I wonder if they'll be on the same schedule for eating and sleeping and all that," said Casey.

"I'm not sure if I would want it like that," said Ashleigh. "Sometimes it's just easier taking care of one rather than having to do both at the same time."

"But you have Beav to help," said Casey.

"Of course, he's been great," said Ashleigh. "Right now he's preparing bottles so we're ready for when they wake up."

"Make sure you have some ready for tonight too," said Casey. "I was up quite a bit with just one baby when Cadence was born. I can only imagine how it's going to be with two."

"Yeah, I might possibly look like a mess the next time you see me," said Ashleigh with a giggle. "I had to force myself to put make-up on today to come and get Maddie from the hospital. I have a feeling the natural look is going to be the way to go for me for the next couple of months."

Casey laughed. "Just do whatever makes you feel comfortable Ash," she said.

"Oh believe me, I will," Ashleigh replied. "But I hear a baby starting to fuss so I'm going to get going."

"That's fine," said Casey. "Call me tomorrow and let me know how your night is."

"I will," said Ashleigh. "And I'm glad you're finally able to come home today Case. I wish I could be there to welcome you home."

"It's not a big deal Ash," said Casey. "You have two perfectly good excuses as to why you can't be there."

"Yeah, that's true," said Ashleigh.

Casey then heard the baby get louder in the background.

"You get going," she said. "I'll talk to you later."

"OK, love you Case," said Ashleigh.

"Love you too," said Casey. "Bye."

Casey hung up the phone and set it back down next to her on the bed. She glanced over at the clock to see it was nearing two in the afternoon. She was about to pick her phone back up and call Cappie when Caleb began to cry in the bassinette next to her. She stood up out of bed and picked him up.

"Shhhh," she whispered as she rocked him back and forth. "I know you want to get out of here as much as I do. Daddy should be here to come and get us real soon."

"Speaking of daddy," said a voice behind Casey.

Casey spun around to see Cappie walking in the door with a huge bouquet of flowers in his hand and a smile on his face.

"I am so sorry I'm a little later than I was planning," he said as he walked over to her and kissed her on the cheek. "I know how much you want to get out of here."

"I was getting a little worried," said Casey as she set Caleb back down in the bassinette. "But I knew you would be here eventually."

"These are for you," he said handing her the flowers.

"Cap, you didn't have to get me flowers," said Casey as she smelled them.

"Oh but I wanted to," said Cappie. "Plus I figured they would look nice in a vase on the kitchen table."

"Yeah, guess you're right," said Casey noticing the colors of the flowers matched some of the colors in their kitchen.

"Alright, I say let's get loaded up and get on out of here," said Cappie as he picked up Caleb's baby carrier and set it on the bed.

"I've got his jacket right here," said Casey as she handed it to Cappie.

Casey packed up her last few things as she watched Cappie put the coat on Caleb. She couldn't help but smile at how gentle he was and how cute he looked doing it.

Cappie picked Caleb up and put him in the carrier and buckled him in.

"Now for your coat," said Cappie as he reached for it and held it open so Casey could put her arms through.

"I think I got everything," said Casey with one last look around the room.

Just then Casey's nurse walked in wheeling a wheelchair. "You know the rules Casey," she said. "You have to go to the car in the wheelchair."

"Do I really have to?" Casey whined.

"Yes," said the nurse with a nod.

"Alright, I guess one last ride won't kill me," said Casey as she sat down in the wheelchair.

Cappie set Casey's bag and flowers in her lap and took Caleb as the nurse wheeled Casey towards the elevator.

Cappie had the Jeep pulled right up to the front door. He put Caleb in the back as the nurse helped Casey into the front seat.

"It's been a pleasure having you Casey," said the nurse. "But I hope I don't see you again too soon, in a nice way if you know what I mean."

"Yeah, I know what you mean," said Casey with a small laugh.

The nurse wheeled the wheelchair back into the hospital as Cappie climbed into the driver's seat.

"Ready?" he asked.

"Let's go home," said Casey as she turned to him and smiled.

Cappie smiled back at her as he put the Jeep into drive and pulled out of the parking lot. The drive home was rather quiet. Caleb was sleeping in the back and Casey and Cappie each just spent the time taking in the moment of finally being out of the hospital and on their way home with their son.

Casey noticed her parents and Cappie's parents were at the house when they pulled in the driveway.

"I had your parents bring Cadence over," said Cappie reading Casey's mind. "And of course my parents are going to be staying here for a little bit as long as that's still OK with you."

"I don't mind at all," Casey replied. "It'll be nice to have a little extra help."

Cappie parked the car in the garage and got Caleb out of the backseat as Casey slowly made her way into the house.

"MOMMY YOU'RE HOME!" Cadence exclaimed immediately as she saw Casey walk in.

"Hi sweetheart," said Casey as she felt Cadence wrap her arms tightly around Casey's legs.

"Cadence, why don't you actually let mommy get into the house," said Mr. Cartwright as he pried Cadence away from Casey.

Cadence reluctantly went with Mr. Cartwright as Cappie and Casey finally made it into the house. Casey took a deep breath as she looked around the living room and kitchen.

"This place looks great," she said. "And something smells really good."

"My mom did a lot of the cleaning," said Cappie as he picked Caleb up out of the carrier.

"And I took it upon myself to make some meatloaf for dinner," said Mrs. Cartwright. "I know it's one of your favorites Casey."

"Aw, thanks mom," said Casey as she smiled at her.

"Mommy! Come look at my new baby doll!" said Cadence as she took Casey's hand and pulled her into the living room.

Casey sat down on the couch as Cadence handed her the doll.

"And where did you get this?" Casey asked as she looked at the doll.

"Gam-pa got it for me," Cadence replied as she pointed to Cappie's dad.

"It's actually an older doll I picked up from a flea market in Maine when I was there," said Mr. Cappington. "I've been meaning to send it to her in the mail but never got around to it."

"Well it's very pretty," said Casey. "Cadence, did you tell grandpa thank you?"

"Thank you," said Cadence as she took the doll back from Casey and looked over at Mr. Cappington.

"When is the last time Caleb's been fed Case?" Cappie asked from the kitchen.

"A couple of hours ago," Casey replied. "He should be ready for a bottle soon."

"Here, let me take care of it," said Mrs. Cappington as she reached towards Cappie for the baby.

"Thanks mom, I'll heat it up for you," said Cappie as he gave Caleb to his mom.

Everyone spent the next few hours passing Caleb around, eating dinner and enjoying their first evening at home and away from the hospital. Casey's parents left after dinner and Cappie's parents retired for the night soon after. Cappie was getting Caleb ready for bed while Cadence insisted Casey tuck her in for the night.

"You had a lot of people to play with tonight," said Casey as she pulled the blanket up over Cadence. "I think you're going to sleep very well."

"Will the baby cry?" Cadence asked as she looked up at Casey.

"Yes, he'll cry," Casey replied. "But he's going to be sleeping in mommy and daddy's room for a little while so hopefully he won't wake you up."

"Why can't I sleep with you?" Cadence whined.

"Caleb isn't sleeping with us sweetheart," said Casey as she sat down on the edge of the bed. "He's in his bassinette in our room."

"I can sleep on the floor," said Cadence.

Casey smiled. "Maybe one day later this week you can spend the night with mommy and daddy," she said. "But you have this nice big girl bed all to yourself. Plus daddy snores sometimes."

"He sounds like a bear," said Cadence with a giggle.

"Yes, he sure does," said Casey also with a small laugh.

Casey stopped laughing and just smiled as she looked down at Cadence. She reached her hand up and brushed a little of her hair off her shoulder. "I love you very much Cadence," she said. "And I'm so lucky to have you as my little girl."

"I wuv you too mommy," said Cadence. "I happy you're home."

"I'm happy I'm home too," said Casey as she leaned down and kissed Cadence on the forehead.

Casey began to stand up when Cadence tugged at her shirt.

"Bedtime story?" she asked as she batted her eyes at Casey.

"Sure," said Casey who couldn't resist that look from Cadence.

She pulled one of the fairytale books off of the bookcase next to Cadence's bed and began to read it to her. Casey was about halfway through when she noticed Cadence was sound asleep. She quietly shut the book, kissed Cadence again on the forehead and walked out of the room shutting the door behind her.

Casey made her way into the master bedroom to find Cappie laying in bed watching some television with the volume down very low. She shut the door behind her and went into the bathroom to change into her pajamas. Cappie turned the TV off as she walked out and got into bed next to him.

"Caleb didn't even wake up when I changed his clothes," said Cappie as Casey cuddled up next to him. "So I'm just waiting for him to wake up here soon and need a bottle."

"Yeah, I guess he is about due isn't he?" Casey asked as she looked at the clock.

"Did Cadence go to sleep alright?" Cappie asked.

"Yeah, I read her a story and she fell asleep about halfway through it," Casey replied. "She did seem a little jealous that Caleb gets to sleep in our room and she doesn't though."

"I'm sure that's just the first of many jealousy things we're going to have to deal with," said Cappie with a sigh.

"True," Casey also said with a sigh.

The two of them laid in the bed in silence for a couple of minutes.

"I have a confession to make," Cappie finally said breaking the silence.

Casey turned her head to look at him. "And what is this?" she asked.

Cappie reached over and took something off of the nightstand next to him.

"I stole one of your necklaces," he said as he handed Casey the small box he had picked up.

Casey gave him a strange look as she took the box and sat up in the bed. She opened the box and noticed it was the necklace Cappie had given her the day they got married.

"I don't understand Cap," said Casey as she looked at him. "What do you mean you had to steal this?"

"Look closely," said Cappie as he smiled at her.

Casey looked back down at the necklace that was heart shaped with the birthstones dangling down inside the heart. She then let out a little gasp when she counted the stones and realized there was four of them there now instead of three.

"You added Caleb's birthstone to this," she finally said as she looked up at Cappie.

"Yup, I hope you like it," said Cappie.

"Aw Cap, I love it!" said Casey as she wrapped her arms around Cappie tightly.

"That's what took me so long today," said Cappie as he backed away. "The jeweler I got that from is up by where we got married so I had to drive up there to get it done today."

"This is so perfect Cap," said Casey as tears started to form in her eyes. "Thank you so much."

Cappie took the box out of Casey's hand and took the necklace out of it. Casey lifted up her hair as he reached around and put it on her.

"It is perfect," said Cappie as he leaned back and looked at the necklace on Casey. "A great ending to a great day. We're all finally home and together like a family should be."

All Casey could do was nod as she plunged her lips forward to connect with Cappie's. She grabbed the sides of his face as he wrapped his arms around her waist to pull her closer and deepen the kiss.

"I love you Case," said Cappie as he backed away for a breath of air.

"I love you too Cap," said Casey as she connected their lips together again.

The two of them slowed the kiss down a little bit. The softer kisses allowed them to savor the moment a little bit more and explore a kind of passion the two of them hadn't felt for quite some time. But unfortunately the moment was cut shorter than planned as Caleb woke up in the bassinette next to them.

"Aw man," Casey playfully whined as she backed away from Cappie.

"Duty calls I guess," said Cappie as he smiled at Casey and got up out of the bed. "You stay here and try and get some rest. I'll take care of him."

"Are you sure?" Casey asked. "Because I'm still wide awake and—"

Cappie cut her off as he leaned down and kissed her on the lips.

"I'm positive," he said with a smile as he backed away from her.

Casey watched as Cappie picked Caleb up from the bassinette and rocked him slowly as he walked out of the room and down the stairs. She really did have the greatest and most caring husband in the world. She reached up and touched the necklace on her neck and smiled. It was good to be home.

* * *

_**A/N: Hello :0) Sorry for no update last week but hopefully this chapter was cute enough and worth the wait :0) It's hard to believe that the end is nearing. I'm thinking about three more chapters are left of the story and each one is getting harder to write because I don't want it to end but I know it's time to wrap things up :0( Thanks for all the reviews and new readers who commented on the last chapter. Your kind words always make my day.**_

_**Heart for ven: No worries, there is an epilogue in the works :0)**_  
_**Kourtland: Thanks so much for the comment! C/C actually did celebrate their 2nd wedding anniversary in the story when he took her back to the place where they got married and had dinner on the beach. I can't remember what chapter that was exactly but I know it's there somewhere LoL!**_

_**Not sure when the next update will be but I promise to post it as soon as I'm done with it.**_


	157. Family

FAMILY

Over the next couple of days Cappie and Casey worked on their new lives with two kids instead of just one and it was a little more challenging then they imagined. Caleb is much fussier than Cadence was and wakes up just about every two hours to be fed or changed. When Caleb first came home Cadence saw him more of a baby doll to her and was very helpful to Casey when taking care of him. But it didn't take her long to begin to get jealous of all the attention Caleb was getting instead of her.

Cappie decided to take Cadence to the park to spend a little time with her while Casey stayed home with Caleb. She had just put him down after his mid-afternoon feeding when the phone rang.

"Hello," she answered.

"Hey Case, how are you?" asked Ashleigh in a tired voice.

"I'm alright," Casey replied. "But you seem a little down."

"I am," said Ashleigh with a sigh. "Taking care of two babies is really difficult in case you didn't know."

"I can understand a little bit," said Casey with a small laugh. "Even though Cadence is older she's still been a handful along with Caleb. But I'm sure you're going through a lot more with have two small children. Has Beaver been a lot of help?"

"Sort of, he's getting just as stressed as I am I think," said Ashleigh.

"Sounds like you guys need a break," said Casey. "Have you thought about having someone watch them for an hour or two just so you guys can get out and take a breather?"

"Yeah I thought about that," said Ashleigh. "But as much as I would like the break, I'm also not ready to leave them alone with someone else quite yet."

"I completely understand," said Casey. "I Cadence was at least a month old before I let my parents take her for a while so Cappie and I could get some dinner."

"And I feel like I haven't seen my best friend in forever either," whined Ashleigh.

"Me too," Casey also playfully whined.

"Could you have Cappie watch the kids for a little bit and come over and spend some time with me?" Ashleigh asked.

"I would do that in a heartbeat Ash but Cappie took Cadence to the park for a while," said Casey. "I'm not sure when they will be back."

"Darn," said Ashleigh softly.

"You know, I could come over and bring Caleb with me for a little bit," said Casey.

"Oh would you?" Ashleigh asked in a little more eager tone than she planned.

"Sure," said Casey. "I'll be there in about fifteen minutes."

"Thanks Case, see you in a bit," said Ashleigh as she hung up the phone.

Casey called Cappie on his cell phone to let him know she was going over to Ashleigh's, loaded Caleb in the car and arrived at their house about fifteen minutes later.

"Hey Case!" said Ashleigh as she opened the door for Casey.

"Hey hun," said Casey as she gave Ashleigh a half hug as she had Caleb in his carrier in her other hand.

"Come on in," said Ashleigh. "I've got the babies on the floor here in the living room."

Casey lifted Caleb out of his carrier and set him down next to Maddison and Matthew. Casey and Ashleigh let out small giggles as the babies were all giving each other weird looks trying to figure out what exactly was going on.

"I think they think they magically got a triplet," said Ashleigh with a smile.

"Well, one with lighter skin that is," said Casey.

"That's true," said Ashleigh.

"So where is Beaver?" Casey asked as both of the girls sat down on the couch but still kept close eyes on the babies on the floor.

"He's taking a little break," Ashleigh replied.

"Taking a nap in the bedroom?" Casey asked.

Maddison began to whine a little bit and Ashleigh stood up and went over to her, ignoring Casey's question.

"Ash?" Casey asked in a sympathetic voice.

"I don't really want to talk about it," said Ashleigh who put a pacifier in Maddison's mouth to quiet her down.

"Ash, I'm your best friend," said Casey as she got up and knelt down next to Ashleigh and put her hand on her shoulder. "You can talk to me about anything. I'm here to help."

"As I said on the phone, we're just a little stressed," said Ashleigh who was blatantly avoiding eye contact with Casey.

Casey watched as Ashleigh stood up and went into the kitchen. "Can I get you something to drink?" she asked.

Casey stood up and walked over to Ashleigh and immediately put her arms around her in a hug. At first Ashleigh didn't respond but eventually she put her arms around Casey and began to sob on her shoulder.

"It's alright Ash," said Casey as she rubbed her back. "Let's go back into the living room and talk."

"OK," said Ashleigh as she backed away and wiped the tears from her eyes.

The two girls glanced at the babies as they sat down on the couch. They sat in silence for a few seconds before Ashleigh finally spoke.

"Beaver is really stressed," said Ashleigh with a sigh. "The two of us got into a fight this morning and he left. I haven't seen him since."

"He left?" Casey exclaimed. "You just had twins, how can he do something like that?"

"I don't know," said Ashleigh fighting back tears. "I've tried to call him several times and he's not picking up his phone. I'm just completely shocked this is happening. This shouldn't be happening."

"I'm shocked too," said Casey. "I always thought Beaver was so laid back and he handled stress well. I mean, he owns two restaurants for crying out loud! How does he not handle stress?"

Ashleigh just reached for a tissue and wiped her eyes.

"Do you mind me asking what the fight was about?" Casey asked.

"The kids," Ashleigh replied with a sigh. "We had both been up pretty much the entire night with one or the other and around nine this morning we were finally able to get a little rest. But then Matthew started crying. So I got up and began changing his diaper when Maddison then starting crying too. I realized it was time for them to eat and went and asked Beaver if he could help me and he just pretty much lost it. He complained about being tired and just wanting to sleep and then I began yelling at him and several words were said that we both probably regret and he was out the door a few minutes later and I haven't seen him since."

"That just doesn't sound like Beaver," said Casey. "I know these babies mean the entire world to him. I can't imagine him just leaving."

"Me neither," said Ashleigh. "That's why I called you earlier. I thought maybe he had gone over there to talk with Cappie or something."

Caleb began to cry and Casey went over and picked him up. "Is there anything I can do for you Ash?" she asked as she rocked him back and forth.

"I would really appreciate it if you could just stay here with me for a little bit," said Ashleigh with a yawn.

"Sure thing," said Casey as she smiled at Ashleigh. "And I'm sure everything is going to be alright. Beaver is too in love with you and the babies to not come back."

"I know," said Ashleigh with a nod of her head.

Over the next hour the girls tended to the babies and ate some lunch. All three babies slept after lunch and they turned on the television to watch some daytime talk shows. It wasn't more than ten minutes into the show when Casey looked over to see Ashleigh sleeping on the couch. She smiled as she turned down the volume on the television a little bit to let her rest.

A few minutes later Matthew began to softly fuss. Casey ran over to his bassinette quickly and picked him up. She rocked him back and forth for a little bit and put the pacifier back in his mouth. He quickly fell back asleep and she set him back down in the bassinette.

Another hour had passed and Ashleigh continued to sleep on the couch. Casey didn't mind; she knew how much Ashleigh needed to nap. Casey stood up and walked over to check on the babies when she heard someone come in through the garage door. She turned around and watched Beaver put his keys and a bouquet of flowers on the counter as he took off his coat. He hadn't seen her yet so she decided to make her presence known.

"Hey Beaver," she said quietly as she walked over towards him.

"Hi Casey," he said. "I figured you would be here. Thanks for coming over."

"Ashleigh's been asleep on the couch for about an hour and a half," said Casey trying her hardest to not sound bitter towards Beaver. "I've just let her sleep. She needed it."

"Yeah, she did," said Beaver with a sigh. "You can go ahead and go on home. I've got it from here."

Casey looked at him hesitantly.

"Really, I do," said Beaver reassuring her. "What I did was very wrong but everything is just fine right now."

"Not to Ashleigh it's not," said Casey coldly.

"I'm going to let her sleep and talk to her when she gets up," said Beaver. "Trust me Case, have I ever let you down before?"

Casey thought for a second. "No, you haven't," she said with a deep breath. "But from what Ashleigh told me about how you acted this morning, I'm just not so sure anymore."

"Casey, I made a huge mistake," said Beaver. "And I'm going to make it up to both Ashleigh and my babies. I promise."

"OK," said Casey. "I trust you."

"Thanks," said Beaver with a small smile.

Casey walked over and placed Caleb in his carrier and walked to the front door.

"Please call Cappie or me if you guys need anything," she said as Beaver walked up to her.

"We will," said Beaver. "And thanks again for coming over Casey."

"You're welcome," Casey whispered as she walked out of the house and to her car.

She put Caleb in the backseat and got into the car. Once in she took a deep breath before starting the car. She hoped Beaver was right. She hoped her two best friends could work through whatever they are going through.

* * *

Even though it was March, Chicago was in the middle of warmer weather passing through. The wind was still a little cool but tolerable with a long-sleeved shirt and jacket. Cappie decided to take advantage of the warmer weather and take Cadence to the park. It had been quite a while since they had been there with the weather being cold and all of the commotion with the new baby. He thought it would be a good chance to bond a little more with his daughter.

"Daddy can we go to the swings first?" Cadence asked as the two of them walked onto the playground.

"Sure," said Cappie as the two of them made their way over to the swings.

Cappie lifted Cadence into one of the child swings and began pushing her back and forth.

"Higher daddy!" exclaimed Cadence.

"I think this is high enough," said Cappie as he pushed her just a little higher.

The two of them spent several minutes on the swing until Cadence asked Cappie to stop and get her down. Once he set Cadence down she went over and sat on a nearby bench.

"Are you OK?" Cappie asked as he sat down next to her.

"My tummy hurts a little bit," said Cadence as she rubbed her stomach.

"I think you may have swung just a little too long," said Cappie. "But your tummy should feel better in a little bit."

"OK," said Cadence softly.

"Do you want a drink?" Cappie asked. "I think I have your juice in the car."

"No, I just want to spend time with you," said Cadence as she laid her head down in Cappie's lap.

"You know you can always spend time with me honey," said Cappie as he began to brush pieces of her brunette hair off of her shoulder.

"Not with Caleb around," said Cadence with a sigh.

"Cadence, mommy and I have explained to you why Caleb needs more attention right now," said Cappie. "He's a baby and he needs his diaper changed and fed every couple of hours. You're a big girl and you don't need as much help."

"Well I don't want to be a big girl," Cadence whined.

"If you don't want to be a big girl anymore then a lot of things in your life are going to change," said Cappie.

"Like what?" Cadence asked as she sat up and looked at him.

"Well for starters you're going to have to go back to sleeping in a crib," said Cappie. "And you won't be able to have your favorite foods like chicken nuggets and ice cream because you can only have baby food. And you will have to give up a lot of your baby dolls because they have small parts that babies can't have."

"What would I do then?" Cadence asked.

"Just what a baby does," Cappie replied. "Eat baby food, sleep, and cry."

"That doesn't sound very fun," said Cadence.

"It's not," said Cappie. "That's why I'm trying to show you that being a big girl isn't such a bad thing. And before you know it Caleb will be a big boy and needing less and less attention from mommy and me."

"Are you sure?" Cadence asked blinking her eyes innocently at him.

"I'm very sure," Cappie replied. "Mommy and I love you just the same as we always have. And just between you and me," he leaned in a little closer to Cadence. "You're always going to hold that special place in my heart as my first born and as daddy's little girl. That's never going to change."

"I love you daddy," said Cadence as she smiled at him.

"And I love you too," said Cappie as he rubbed the side of her cheek.

Cadence stood up on the bench and wrapped her hands around Cappie's neck. Cappie smiled as he wrapped his arms around her tiny frame. He hoped his little talk with her will help calm her jealousy feelings down a little bit.

"Can big girls play on the jungle gym?" Cadence asked as she backed away from Cappie.

"Of course they can," said Cappie as he stood up and helped Cadence hop off of the bench.

The two of them went over to the jungle gym and Cappie helped her climb up on the platform where she began to spin the pretend wheel like she was sailing a ship.

"Excuse me," said an older woman who came up next to Cappie.

"Can I help you?" Cappie asked turning towards her.

"I don't mean to interrupt anything but are you Mr. Cappington?" she asked.

"Why yes I am," said Cappie feeling a little like a celebrity. "And you are?"

"I'm Sally Kofax," she replied. "I thought you looked familiar. I love your restaurants. I eat at the one downtown for lunch almost every day."

"Why thank you," said Cappie with a smile. "It's always nice to hear from the customers."

"I've always wanted to approach you with a proposition I have but you haven't been around when I've been in to eat lately," said Sally.

"My wife actually just had another baby," said Cappie. "So I've been taking some time off to help her out."

"Oh congratulations," she said. "I'm sure the baby is a great addition to the cutie you already have."

"He is," said Cappie as he turned around and glanced at Cadence to make sure she was OK. "Anyway, were you saying something about a proposition?"

"Yeah, I work for a major investing firm downtown and a lot of us are very fond of your restaurant and food and we would like to be the firm that helps you expand the business even further," she replied.

"And what do you mean by that?" Cappie asked.

"Have you ever thought about expanding the restaurant nationally?" Sally asked.

"Actually we have thought about it," Cappie replied. "But there is just so much risk and a lot of time and effort into finding the right places and getting everything started."

"What if I tell you that we have a team that would be willing to help you guys both financially and from a business standpoint with our company?" Sally asked. "You would still be in complete control but we would be able to provide you with the man power to make it possible. Your restaurant has the kind of food and atmosphere that our company believes can be successful all over the US and we want to be the ones to help you make those dreams come true."

"It sure does sound tempting," said Cappie. "I'm just not sure with my partner and I just having new babies the time is exactly right."

"That's understandable," Sally stated. "But it's never too early to meet with us and get the ball rolling."

Cappie just nodded his head, unsure of what to say next.

"Here is my card," Sally said as she pulled her card out of her purse. "Give me a call sometime and we can set up a meeting just to talk and discuss things."

"OK, thanks for the information," said Cappie. "Nice meeting you."

"You too," said Sally as she shook Cappie's hand and walked away.

Cappie was putting her card in his back pocket when he suddenly heard Cadence's cries behind him. He spun around quickly to see she had fallen to the ground. He ran over quickly and knelt down beside her.

"What happened?" he asked.

"I…..I…..fell," Cadence said through her tears.

"What hurts?" Cappie asked.

"My…..knee," said Cadence as she pointed to her left knee.

Cappie lifted up her pants leg to see a scrape on her knee with a light blood trail going down her leg.

"Anything else hurt?" he asked.

Cadence shook her head no as tears continued to stream down her cheeks.

"Come on, let's go to the Jeep and get you cleaned up," said Cappie as he lifted her up off the ground and in his arms.

Cadence had calmed down a little more once they got to the Jeep. Cappie opened the back door and sat her on the back seat. He went to the back and got out the first aid kit.

"Now this may sting a little bit," said Cappie as he opened one of the alcohol wipes. "But I have to put it on to clean your boo boo OK?"

"OK," said Cadence with a nod of her head.

Cappie watched as she squeezed her eyes tightly shut as he wiped the wound clean.

"Good job, all done," said Cappie as he opened up a Band-Aid and put it on her knee.

"No Barney?" Cadence asked.

"I just have plain Band-Aids here," said Cappie. "We can change it when we get back to the house if you want."

"OK, thanks for taking care of me daddy," said Cadence.

"You're welcome," said Cappie as he smiled at her. "Are you ready to go home now?"

"I wanna play more," said Cadence.

"Are you sure your knee is going to be OK?" Cappie asked.

"It's OK," Cadence replied. "I just want to spend more time with you."

"Well let's go shall we?" Cappie asked reaching his hand out to her.

Cadence smiled as she reached for Cappie's hand and slid out of the seat and onto the ground. Even though her knee still hurt a lot she was having a great time spending the afternoon with her dad and she wasn't ready for it to end just yet.

* * *

Ashleigh woke up to Maddison fussing. At first she wasn't quite sure where she was or how long she had been sleeping. But she looked at the clock to see it was nearing dinner time and realized she had slept a lot longer then she had planned. And instantly she felt like a horrible mother and friend expecting to find Casey tending to the babies but when she sat up she was surprised to see Beaver instead. He was changing Matthew's diaper and trying his best to get Maddison to quiet down at the same time but it wasn't working so well.

"You're going to wake your mommy up if you don't be quiet," she heard him whisper to Maddison.

"It's alright, I'm already up," said Ashleigh as she stretched and picked Maddison up to rock her in her arms.

"They were quiet enough for a while at least to let you sleep I guess," said Beaver as he fastened the clean diaper to Matthew.

"When did they last eat?" Ashleigh asked.

"Only about an hour ago," Beaver replied as he picked Matthew up and set him back in the bassinette. "Maddie may just need her diaper changed too."

"Surprisingly no," said Ashleigh as she checked it.

"Here, let me have her," said Beaver as he took Maddison from Ashleigh's arms.

Beaver rocked her for a couple of minutes until she quieted down and put her back in the bassinette also.

"We should probably talk," said Ashleigh as she plopped down onto the couch.

"Definitely," said Beaver. "Can I get you a water or something first?"

"Sure," said Ashleigh as Beaver walked into the kitchen.

He came back a couple of seconds later with a bottle of water in one hand and a beautiful bouquet of flowers in the other.

"There are for you," he said handing her the flowers.

"Thanks," she said as Beaver sat on the couch next to her.

"I screwed up big time," said Beaver as he turned to look at her. "I never should have walked out on you like that. This is completely my fault and I don't want you to think that it's yours in any way."

"I just don't understand what happened Beav," said Ashleigh as she smelled the flowers her gave her. "I know we were both getting really stressed but these are our children. We can't just walk away from them."

"I know," said Beaver with a nod. "I just got to the point where I didn't know what to do anymore. I don't think I have ever gone that long without having any sleep. You know me; I took like two naps a day in college. I think my body just wasn't used to that and my nerves were at their very end and unfortunately I took it out on you and I shouldn't have. I'm really sorry Ash."

"I know," said Ashleigh setting the flowers on the coffee table in front of her. "But I think the two of us need to come up with a change in plans so this doesn't happen again in the future."

"Oh this is never going to happen again. You have my word," said Beaver.

"I'm sure that's the truth," said Ashleigh. "But I think it would be best for us if we maybe try to take turns so one of us can at least get a little bit of sleep."

"But I'm not sure if just one of us can handle both feeding and changing them during the night," said Beaver.

"I think our problem is thinking that we have to tend to both of them at the same time," said Ashleigh. "There is nothing wrong with letting one of them cry for a few minutes while we change the other's diaper or something."

"That's very true," said Beaver. "It's just really hard to listen to them cry."

"I'm sure it will get easier as we get the hang of it," said Ashleigh. "So why don't we give it a try tonight? You can get up the first half of the night while I'll get up with them the second? That way both of us can at least get a little bit of sleep rather than the no sleep we were running on."

"That sounds good," said Beaver. "We'll just have to see what happens I guess."

"Yeah…." Ashleigh sighed.

Beaver then pulled Ashleigh close to him and wrapped his arms around her.

"You will never know how sorry I am," he whispered to her. "I'll make it up to you, I promise."

"You don't have to do anything to make it up to me," said Ashleigh. "I understand you were stressed and under conditions you weren't used to. But I think the two of us have a better handle on it now."

"We do," Beaver replied as he squeezed Ashleigh a little tighter.

The two of them laid there for several minutes until Ashleigh turned to look up at Beaver.

"So I'm curious," she said looking into his eyes. "What did you do with the several hours you had away from the babies?"

Beaver let out a small laugh. "Honestly," he said. "I pulled into the parking lot of the grocery store down the street and fell asleep."

"You slept in the car?" Ashleigh asked, also with a small laugh.

"Yeah, and it really wasn't that comfortable at all," Beaver replied. "But I was so tired that it really didn't matter I guess."

Just then Matthew began to cry.

"It's feeding time," said Ashleigh as she began to get up.

"Hold on," said Beaver as he held Ashleigh from getting up. "He can cry for a second while I get a nice kiss from you."

"Mmmmm," said Ashleigh as she leaned closer to him. "I think I can do that."

Beaver pulled her against him as their two lips met for a soft, yet lengthy kiss.

"I love you," said Beaver as he backed away.

"I love you too," Ashleigh replied. "But I think it's time to feed the babies now."

"Sure thing," said Beaver as they both stood up and made their way over to the babies.

* * *

Casey was watching the news on the couch later that evening while Cappie put Cadence to bed. She was fighting to stay awake a little bit so she could spend a little time with Cappie before going to bed. She knew Caleb would have her up most of the night so she wanted to get as much sleep as she could while he was asleep. She was just about to drift off when she heard Cappie walk down the stairs.

"That trip to the park must have really worn her out because she was asleep by the third page in the book I was reading her," said Cappie as he sat on the couch next to Casey.

"It sounded like you guys did a lot at the park so it's no wonder she's tired," said Casey. "I'm just sorry that she fell and got hurt."

"I cleaned her knee again before she put her pajamas on," said Cappie. "And she got her Barney Band-Aid so I think she'll be just fine."

"It's amazing how much better a colored Band-Aid can make a child," said Casey with a small laugh.

"As long as she's happy then I'm happy," said Cappie.

"So have you thought any more about what that woman approached you with in the park?" Casey asked. "It sounds like a really good opportunity to me."

"Yeah it does," Cappie replied. "I just need to talk to Beaver about it first. Then maybe we'll give her a call and set up a meeting. I don't think now is really the best time with the new babies. I want to make sure Beave and I will be around to help you and Ash. But we can at least meet with them to see what they have to say."

"That's probably a good idea," said Casey as she put her hand on his leg. "Especially with everything Ash and Beave are going through right now."

"I'm sure they are going to be fine," said Cappie. "I've seen Beaver have moments of weakness before. They don't happen often but when they do he makes up for it."

"Yeah, I'm sure they'll be fine," said Casey.

"So anything good on the news?" Cappie asked.

"Not really," Casey replied. "It's supposed to be cooler tomorrow according to the weather. But I honestly didn't see much more because I was beginning to drift off right before you came downstairs. I probably should just go to bed before I fall asleep on you."

"You know I wouldn't mind that so much," said Cappie as he pulled Casey closer to him.

"I'm sure you wouldn't," said Casey as she snuggled closer to his chest.

"Actually, I have a favor to ask you before you fall asleep," said Cappie.

"What is that?" Casey asked as she looked up at him.

"I'm looking to finish the DVD I'm making for the executive board in the next day or two and I don't have your testimony yet," he replied. "So I was wondering if you would be willing to do that tonight really quick before you go to bed."

"Yeah, I've actually been looking forward to doing it," said Casey as she sat up.

Cappie went and got the video camera and began to set it up on the coffee table in front of Casey.

"You want me to stick around and help you?" Cappie asked once he was finished.

"Did you watch anyone else?" Casey gave him a knowing look.

"Alright, I'll just sit on the stairs and listen anyways," said Cappie with a smile as he kissed Casey on the cheek and walked away.

Casey just rolled her eyes and smiled as she leaned forward and started the camera.

"Hello everyone, my name is Casey Cappington, formerly Casey Cartwright and I am a member of the Zeta Beta Zeta sorority," Casey began. "I want to first off apologize for my appearance," she said with a small laugh. "I just had a baby and he's doing his best to limit my sleep so if I look a little worn out that's why. But you probably don't really care about that. You want to know how the Greek system affected my life."

She paused for a second.

"Well I guess I could start off by saying that my husband, my brother and all of my best friends were a part of the Greek system and if I wasn't a part of the system I probably never would have gotten to know them. Even my brother, as strange as that sounds. We didn't have much of a relationship when he first came to CRU but we really grew closer when he joined Kappa Tau. I regret now not having a closer bond to him when we were growing up but I'm very thankful that we were able to change that once he started college and I believe our involvement in the Greek system really helped with that. We finally had something in common. He really grew into an amazing person in college. I watched him go from my goofy, annoying brother to one of my best friends."

Casey paused and looked down at her hands and then back up at the camera.

"My senior year in college I had a surprise pregnancy," she continued. "And if it wasn't for my sorority sisters and support from the other Greeks I'm not sure if I would have made it. My best friend Ashleigh was the first person I told and she stood by my side through everything. And surprisingly the rest of my sorority sisters weren't as supportive at first. I think it maybe was the shock they were in when I first told them though because a few days later they got together and threw me a wonderful baby shower and were much more supportive. Now I'm not saying getting pregnant in college is the right thing to do or anything. But when I was faced with one of the most difficult times in my entire life, my fellow sorority sisters and fraternity brothers were there to help me through. It really says a lot about a group of people to be as accepting as they were."

Casey wiped a small tear out of her eye before she continued.

"I guess if I could sum up everything in my Greek experience in one word it would be family. I never had a sister growing up and when I joined the sorority I instantly got fifty of them. The Greek system gives students a chance to be a part of a family. My parents were several hours away and when I couldn't turn to them I had another family I could turn to. If you take the Greek system away you're going to take away the chance for students to experience that family. The Greek system isn't all about politics and instant friends. It's about a bond you form with others that is special and irreplaceable. I love my sisters and I would do just about anything for them. And that's the reason that I am doing this. Sure I've thought about the negative effects of getting rid of the Greek system will have on future students but I think it's going to have a much more negative effect on the current students and my sisters. They will be left with no place to live, no future events and activities and most importantly they will lose their faith in the system. I can't let that happen to my sisters. That's how important they are to me. I hope I've allowed you to see how much being a Zeta Beta Zeta has meant to me and persuade you to vote in favor of keeping it around. Don't just think of the past and future students, think of the current ones too."

With that Casey leaned forward and turned off the camera. She leaned back on the couch and took a deep breath. She didn't realize how emotional she would get when talking about what being a ZBZ meant to her. It didn't take long for Cappie to make his way in and sit down next to her.

"You didn't talk nearly enough about me," he said jokingly.

"I figured I'd let you do that in your video," Casey said with a small smile. "Why don't you go next?"

As if it was on cue Caleb began to fuss in the baby monitor.

"Duty calls," said Cappie as he stood up.

"I can feed him if you want," said Casey as she also stood up.

"Nah, you head to bed," said Cappie. "I'll be in there as soon as I'm done feeding him."

"OK, thanks honey," said Casey as she gave Cappie a soft kiss on the lips and headed upstairs.

Cappie heated up a bottle and made his way to Caleb's room. He sat in the rocking chair and fed Caleb the bottle. Caleb was still a little fussy after he was finished so Cappie laid him on his chest and rocked back and forth attempting to calm him down. Cappie hadn't realized how tired he actually was because pretty soon both he and Caleb were asleep in the chair, the first of many in their new father and son relationship.

* * *

_**A/N: Whew, it sure has been a while hasn't it? Sorry about that everyone. I didn't have a whole lot of motivation to write for a while and then my grandfather passed away recently so I was dealing with that for a while :0( But I'm still here and have no fear that this story will be finished. I hate leaving things undone so you have my word. Hard to believe there is only one chapter left and then the epilogue but I'm happy with where it's ending and I hope you guys will be too :0) As always, drop a review and let me know what you think of the chapter. I promise I'll try and get the final two up much quicker. And I'm slowly working on Room With a View also for anyone reading that. I didn't forget about you guys!**_


	158. Rainbows

RAINBOWS

"Man, it really feels good to be back here," Cappie said to himself as he walked into the restaurant for the first time in over a month.

"Mr. Cappie!" said the hostess excitedly. "How are you? How are things with the baby?"

"Everything is wonderful," said Cappie. "And since things are going so well I decided to come back to work and catch up on things."

"Well good to have you back," she said with a smile. "Beaver is back in the kitchen if you wanted to see him."

"Wait, he's here?" Cappie asked as he walked back towards the kitchen area. He honestly hadn't expected Beaver would be here.

Cappie opened the door to the kitchen to a warm welcome from the cooks but didn't see Beaver. He then went to the office and found him busily doing some things on the computer.

"Hey buddy!" said Cappie as he walked in. "I didn't expect to find you here."

"Hey Cap," Beaver less than mumbled under his breath.

"Uh, something wrong?" Cappie asked as he sat in the chair next to Beaver.

Beaver closed the door to the office and turned towards Cappie. "We have a problem," he said.

"What's going on?" Cappie asked.

"According to our financials," said Beaver as he directed Cappie to the computer. "We lost over five thousand dollars last month."

"There is no way," said Cappie scanning the spreadsheet on the computer. "We haven't had a losing month since either restaurant opened."

"I know, I'm dumbfounded," said Beaver. "But I've been looking at the figures the past couple of days and there is nothing jumping out at me as an area where we went wrong."

"The past couple of days?" Cappie asked as he looked at Beaver. "If you've known about this how come you didn't tell me?"

"You have a new baby at home Cap," said Beaver. "I just didn't want to bother you."

"First of all, you have two new babies at home," said Cappie trying not to sound too angry. "And second of all I thought I was the financial planner of this operation. If anyone should have been called to go over things it should have been me."

"I didn't want you to overreact," said Beaver.

"Overreact?" Cappie raised his voice. "We both count on these restaurants to make money to provide for our families. I think we should both be overreacting right now. This is serious. I can't believe you didn't call and tell me."

A knock at the door interrupted their argument.

"Come in," said Beaver.

"I'm sorry to bother you guys," said the hostess. "But I just wanted to let you know that Casey and Ashleigh are here with the kids."

"Thanks Carly," said Cappie as she left and shut the door.

"What are the girls doing here?" Beaver asked.

"I suggested that they should come down and get some lunch," said Cappie. "But that was certainly before I knew about all this. I need some time to go over these numbers."

"Alright, well, let's just play it cool," said Beaver. "I don't want to worry Ashleigh and I'm sure you don't want to worry Casey so we'll just pretend everything is fine for the time being. And maybe if you go over these financials you can see what may have gone wrong."

"OK, sounds good," said Cappie with a deep breath.

The two of them stood up and went out to where the girls were seated.

"Daddy!" exclaimed Cadence who was the first to see them approaching the table.

"Hey sweetheart," said Cappie as he picked her and gave her a kiss. "Have you been a good girl for mommy?"

"Yup," said Cadence with a smile. "I fed Caleb a bottle today."

"And she did a very good job," said Casey as she reached up and patted Cadence on her arm as Cappie put her back down in her seat.

"I didn't expect to see you guys here today," said Beaver as he sat down next to Ashleigh.

"We were hesitant to come when Cappie had mentioned it," said Ashleigh. "But as Casey and I thought about it a little more we realized it had been a while since we were out of the house so we decided to come and have some lunch."

"Looks like you picked a good time," said Beaver as he looked at the twins asleep in their carriers.

"Yeah, Case and I made sure they were all fed and changed before we left," said Ashleigh.

"Has everything been going alright around here?" Casey asked.

Beaver and Cappie exchanged nervous looks.

"Perfect."

"Fine."

"Great."

"Couldn't be better," they both traded words, which were much less convincing than they hoped.

"Are you sure?" Ashleigh asked. "You both look like something is wrong."

"It's just a little stressful getting back into the swing of things," said Cappie. "That's all."

Casey wasn't too convinced but decided to let it go for the time being and change the subject. "I can't wait to have the asian salad. It's been way too long since I've had it."

"Speaking of food," said Beaver as he looked around for the waiter. "We're all probably ready to order."

Beaver waved down Carl, their waiter, and everyone ordered.

"Oh my gosh, I can't believe I forgot to tell you guys," said Casey after he left.

"What?" Ashleigh asked.

"I got a call from Rusty last night," said Casey. "He and Jordan finally picked a wedding date."

"Yay! That's so exciting," said Ashleigh. "When is it?"

"It's December seventh," said Casey. "And I believe it's going to be in the CRU area from what he told me."

"Well I'll be sure to mark it on the calendar," said Ashleigh. "Do you know if they've picked the wedding party or anything like that?"

"It's going to be a small wedding," Casey replied. "It sounds like there is only going to be a best man and a maid of honor. But they've got almost nine months until the date so that may change once they really start planning."

"I think it will be nice to actually go to a smaller wedding," said Beaver. "Ours was pretty large and who can forget Rebecca and Evan's extravaganza."

"Speaking of them," said Ashleigh. "Rebecca told me that Evan might be getting another promotion at work."

"Wow, he's certainly moving up the ladder fast," said Cappie.

"I guess this new position would involve some more travelling so they aren't sure if he's going to take it or not," said Ashleigh.

"Yeah, that would be hard," said Casey. "Especially if they want to start having kids soon."

"I thought Rebecca was totally against having kids at the moment," said Beaver.

"She was," Ashleigh replied. "But I think seeing us have our little families has made her rethink things a little bit."

Cappie let out a small laugh. "I'm sorry," he said. "I still think Evan and Rebecca with children is a weird thing."

"Be nice," said Casey as she playfully hit Cappie. "Both Evan and Rebecca have grown up a lot in the past several years. I think they are more than ready."

"Mommy you hit daddy!" said Cadence with a gasp. "That's bad."

"Yeah, mommy is a bad girl," said Cappie with a smile as he played along.

"Kiss his boo boo!" said Cadence.

"I was just playing around," said Casey. "I didn't really hit daddy."

"Kiss his boo boo!" Cadence yelled again.

"You heard the girl," said Cappie as he held out his arm towards Casey.

Casey rolled her eyes as she leaned forward and kissed the place she hit on Cappie's arm.

"Was that better?" Casey asked.

"Now say you're sorry," said Cadence.

"Why did we have to teach her to be so polite?" Casey mumbled sarcastically to Cappie under her breath.

"I can't hear you mommy," said Cadence.

Casey turned to look at Cappie. "I'm very sorry for hitting you," said Casey. "Will you please forgive me?"

"I forgive you," said Cappie continuing to play along.

"Now kiss!" said Cadence.

"Wow, we can certainly see who wears the pants in this family," said Beaver with a laugh.

Cappie and Casey leaned in and gave each other a small kiss on the lips.

"Much better," said Cadence as she smiled at her parents.

"Here are your salads," said Carl as he approached the table. "I'll be back in a second with the rest of your food."

They all ate their lunches while making small talk about the weather and their plans for the weekend. As if on cue Maddison began to fuss a little once they had finished.

"I guess that's our cue to get going," said Ashleigh as she picked up Maddison to try and get her to quiet down. "Lunch was great as usual guys."

"My chicken nuggets were yummy!" Cadence added.

"I'll help you take the kids out to the car," said Beaver as he stood up.

"Can I help too?" Cadence asked.

"Sure, if it's OK with your mom and dad," said Ashleigh.

"Yeah, go ahead," said Casey. "We'll be out right behind you."

Ashleigh handed Cadence Maddison's empty carrier to hold and they made their way towards the door.

Cappie was getting Caleb ready to leave when Casey came up right next to him and turned him to look at her.

"What's wrong?" she asked.

"It's no big deal," said Cappie as he tried to turn back towards Caleb but Casey wouldn't let him.

"Cap, it's written all over your face," said Casey. "I know something is wrong. Why won't you tell me?"

"I don't want to worry you," said Cappie. "I'm not even sure if it's something to worry about at the moment."

Casey just looked at Cappie with pleading eyes. Finally Cappie took a deep breath and sank back down in the chair behind him.

"According to the manager's calculations we lost over five thousand dollars last month," he said avoiding eye contact with Casey.

"Whoa, that's a lot of money," said Casey as she sat back down in her chair also.

"Beaver's known for a couple of days now and it pisses me off that he didn't tell me," said Cappie as he sat up and put his elbows on his knees.

"Maybe he thought he could handle it on his own," said Casey. "And when he couldn't, that's when he came to you."

"I'm not so sure I would know about this right now if I hadn't come into work today," said Cappie. "It just doesn't make any sense. We've never had a losing month."

"Hey, calm down," said Casey as she put her hands on Cappie's forearms. "I'm sure there must be some sort of explanation. And if there isn't then we'll just work on fixing whatever went wrong the next month. We have plenty of money in savings. Everything is going to be just fine."

There was a short silence before Cappie finally looked up at Casey with a small smile on his face.

"You always have a way of calming me down and getting me to realize that things aren't really that bad," he said. "I guess that's why I keep you around huh?"

Casey let out a small laugh. "That and the fact that we have two beautiful children together."

"Yeah, that too," said Cappie as he glanced over a Caleb who had woken up but still laying peacefully in his carrier. "I'm not sure when I'll be home," said Cappie as he turned back to Casey.

"I understand," said Casey with a nod. "Give me a call here and there so I know you're still alive though OK?"

"I can do that," said Cappie as he pulled Casey close to him for a hug.

"Thanks again," he said as he rested his head on her shoulder. "You're the best."

"You're welcome," Casey replied as she backed away and kissed Cappie on the cheek. "We should really get going though before Ashleigh and Beaver wonder what happened to us."

"Good idea," said Cappie as he picked up Caleb's carrier and they headed out the door.

* * *

It was around seven that evening and Cappie was still hard at work in the restaurant office trying to see what had gone wrong with their financials for last month. Beaver had given up and left a couple of hours earlier. He also really needed to get home to help out Ashleigh with the babies. Cappie had called Casey a couple of times to check in and she insisted she was OK handling Cadence and Caleb and he could take as much time as he needed.

Cappie had spent most of the afternoon comparing last month's financials to the month before. He looked at everything from the food that was ordered from the suppliers to the wages of the employees trying to find a wrong number that was typed in or anything that would explain the loss of money. At one point the manager Chris even joined him since he was the one who prepared the initial report but he eventually had to tend to the restaurant since the dinner rush was arriving so Cappie was back to looking at things on his own again.

Cappie was about to get up to get a glass of water when his cell phone rang.

"Hey babe," he answered with a sigh.

"I guess from your tone of voice there haven't been any developments," said Casey.

"No, still the same old thing," said Cappie.

"Have you eaten?" Casey asked.

Cappie looked at his watch. "I guess it is around dinner time isn't it?"

"Why don't you come home honey," said Casey. "I can make a nice meal for you and it will give you a little break away from the numbers."

"I'll admit they are starting to kind of run together," said Cappie.

"Then come home," said Casey. "Some dinner with us and a little break will do you good. You can even bring everything home to pick up later tonight if you want."

"Are you sure?" Cappie asked. "Because I can just come back here and—"

"No need for that," Casey interrupted. "The kids will be going to bed soon after dinner and it should stay fairly quiet around here until Caleb wakes up for his first bottle."

Cappie pushed his hair back out of his face. "Alright, give me a few minutes to gather everything up here and I'll be home in a little bit."

"I made Cadence spaghetti for dinner, is that alright for you?" Casey asked.

"Sounds great," Cappie replied. "See you in a little bit."

"OK bye," said Casey.

Cappie quickly hung up the phone, gathered his reports, boxes of receipts and the flash drive from the computer and headed out of the office.

"You calling it a night?" Chris asked.

"Not exactly," said Cappie showing him the reports in his hands. "I'm going to take it home and continue to analyze things there."

"Well good luck," said Chris. "Let me know if you find anything."

"I will," Cappie replied as he walked out towards the car.

The drive home was rather calming considering the stressful afternoon he had looking through thousands of charts and numbers. He was excited to get home to his family too. He could tell the break was going to be good for him.

Right on cue Cadence ran up to him as soon as he walked in the door. He couldn't help but smile from ear to ear at her enthusiasm. He quickly put all his reports down and picked her up in his arms.

"I missed you all day daddy," said Cadence.

"I missed you too," Cappie replied as he kissed her on the cheek. "What have you been doing?"

"I made you a picture," said Cadence as she wiggled out of Cappie's arms and ran over to the kitchen table.

"Hey sweetheart," said Cappie as he walked over and gave Casey a quick kiss on the lips.

"Look!" said Cadence holding a picture up in front of him.

"Wow, this is great," said Cappie as he took the picture from her which was full of colorful blobs. "What is it a picture of?"

"I tell you," said Cadence as Cappie kneeled down next to her. "That is the house," she said pointing to the green blob. "And you and me and mommy and Caleb," she continued pointing to each of the other colored blobs. "It's a family."

"I can't wait to hang this up in my office," said Cappie as he stood back up.

"Cadence why don't you go watch your movie for a little bit while daddy eats dinner," said Casey.

"OK," said Cadence. "Can we play later daddy?"

"Sure thing," said Cappie as he brushed his finger on Cadence's nose causing her to giggle.

He watched her run into the living room and sit on the couch as he sat at the kitchen table.

"I hope you're hungry," said Casey as she set a large plate of spaghetti in front of Cappie. "I've always been a bad guesser on how much pasta to boil."

"I see that,' said Cappie as he began to mix the pasta up.

"Here's some garlic bread I made too," said Casey as she set it in front of him.

"Perfect," said Cappie as he took his first bite. "Where's Caleb?"

"He's in his swing," Casey replied pointing to the other side of the kitchen. "He could be in that thing for hours and not have a care in the world. He just lays there and stares at everything around him."

"He's just a curious little boy," said Cappie as he took a bite of garlic bread.

"He sure is," said Casey as she picked him up and sat down at the kitchen table with Cappie.

"Hey little buddy," said Cappie as he put down his fork and rubbed the soft skin on Caleb's arm.

Caleb let out a little coo and smiled at Cappie.

"Such a happy little baby," said Casey as she kissed Caleb on the cheek.

"Sorry your first day alone with him has been longer than we planned," said Cappie as he mixed up his pasta again.

"It's not a big deal," Casey replied. "Caleb has been pretty good and believe it or not Cadence is much more help than I thought she would be. I can tell she's really taken a liking to him. I'm seeing less and less jealousy outbursts out of her."

"That's good," said Cappie as he took another bite. "I was really worried about that with her."

"I was too," said Casey. "I guess we'll just have to wait and see but it seems like things are going well for now."

Casey got up and heated a bottle for Caleb. She fed him while Cappie finished up his dinner. After Cappie was done with the dishes he spent some time with Cadence. She had several toys spread around the living room floor and they jumped around playing with each one for a bit while Casey relaxed with Caleb and watched the evening news.

Pretty soon it was time for Cadence to go to bed and she was not very happy about it as she was having a lot of fun with Cappie. But she reluctantly gave in when Cappie promised to read her a bedtime story before she had to go to sleep.

Cappie read Cadence her favorite story and was about to stand up and walk out of the room when Cadence stopped him.

"Daddy, can you read me a bedtime story all time until I'm old like you?" she asked.

"You think I'm old?" he asked with a little laugh.

"Not too old," Cadence replied. "You don't have wrinkles."

"Well thank you, I think," said Cappie as he began to stand up again.

"Wait, you didn't answer my question daddy," said Cadence.

"Cadence," said Cappie as he sat back down on her bed. "I will read you bedtime stories for as long as you want me to. But I know it's not going to be until as old as I am."

"Why not?" Cadence asked.

"Well because you'll be an adult with your own career and a boyfriend or a husband when you're my age," Cappie replied. "And who knows, maybe you'll have your own child you'll be reading bedtime stories to."

"I don't want to grow up," said Cadence. "I want you to read to me forever."

"I don't want you to grow up either," said Cappie as he took Cadence's hand. "But growing up is a part of life that we all must go through. And it may seem scary now but it's really not a bad thing. You know, if I hadn't grown up I wouldn't be here with you today."

"That's silly daddy," said Cadence.

"It's true," said Cappie as he squeezed her hand. "One day I'll tell you the whole story about me and your mommy and how our lives changed for the better once we knew you were coming along."

"Tell me now!" exclaimed Cadence.

"No, not now," said Cappie with a small smile. "It's your bedtime and you're not quite old enough to understand the complexities of what went on."

"The what?" Cadence asked, not understanding the big word her dad had used.

"Never mind," said Cappie. "Time for you to give me a goodnight kiss."

Cadence sat up and kissed Cappie on the lips.

"Ouch daddy, you hurt," she said as she laid back down.

"I guess I probably should shave huh?" Cappie asked as he rubbed the stubble on his face.

Cadence just nodded her head and she turned to get comfortable in the bed.

"Goodnight sweetheart, I love you," said Cappie as he leaned down and gave her one last kiss on the cheek.

"Love you too daddy," Cadence whispered as she was already starting to fall asleep.

Cappie quietly crept out of her room and back downstairs to the living room.

"Hey babe," said Casey with a yawn as Cappie sat down on the couch next to her. "I'm just giving Caleb his last bottle and then I'll put him down and you should have some peace and quiet to go through your reports."

"Can I finish up?" Cappie asked as he held his arms out for Caleb.

"Sure," said Casey as she handed Caleb over to Cappie.

Cappie watched as Casey yawned again. "You know," he said. "Why don't you go up and go to bed. I'll keep Caleb down here with me tonight."

"Won't he bother you when he wakes up and needs a bottle or to be changed or something?" Casey asked.

"I think of it as giving me a break every couple of hours," said Cappie. "It'll be good for me."

"You're not planning on staying up the whole night are you?" Casey asked.

"I'm not planning on it, no," Cappie replied shaking his head. "But you know me, I'm the type of person who won't sleep until I either find the problem or realize there is nothing else to look at. So it's hard to say how long I'll be up for."

"Are you sure you want him down here with you?" Casey asked.

"I'm positive," said Cappie as Caleb finished his bottle and Cappie turned him to burp him. "His bassinette is still down here so he can sleep in that while I'm working in the office. That way you can get several good hours of sleep."

"I have to admit, your offer is very tempting," said Casey.

"Then take it," said Cappie. "The two of us will be fine. Go to bed and get some sleep."

"OK," said Casey as she stood up. "Just remember to turn on the baby monitor if you end up putting him in his crib and going to bed."

"I will," Cappie replied.

Casey leaned down and gave Cappie a kiss on the lips.

"Thanks babe," she said as she backed away. "I love you."

"I love you too," Cappie replied as he watched Casey walk towards the stairs.

After he got a couple of burps out of Caleb he rolled the bassinette into the office and set Caleb in it to go to sleep. He then got his reports, turned on the computer and picked up where he left off before.

He spent the next three hours staring at report after report, feeding and changing Caleb as needed and pacing back and forth in the room with frustration. He finally got to the point where he knew something was wrong with the numbers because they weren't matching up but he hadn't figured out what the exact problem was.

It was just after two in the morning when he opened the box of receipts from last month to start going through them one by one. He eventually sat on the floor and dumped the entire box out to make it easier for him to see everything. He picked a couple up and began recording them when something of a different color than the rest of the white receipts caught his eye. He picked it up and a rush of excitement came over him as he realized it was a check for ten thousand dollars. He quickly sat back up in the desk chair and pulled up the spreadsheet of private parties the restaurant had booked that month. And sure enough, the name on the check matched the name of a person who had rented out the entire restaurant for a business function the first week of the month.

"How on earth did this check get missed and not cashed?" Cappie mumbled under his breath.

Even though he was concerned that the check ended up in the wrong place he was ecstatic that the mystery was finally solved and the restaurant was back in the positive for last month. He wanted so badly to pick up the phone and call Beaver or run upstairs and tell Casey but he knew they were both probably sleeping and didn't want to disturb them.

Cappie cleaned up all the receipts on the floor, put all the reports back together and tucked the check neatly in his wallet to take to the bank when it opened. He decided to check his e-mail quickly before going to bed and was surprised to see an e-mail from Dale. He opened it and read it carefully.

_Hey Cap,  
I just wanted to make sure you got my video as I hadn't heard anything back from you. I can't remember when Rusty said the executive board was making their decision but just know that I'm keeping you and the rest of my Greek friends in my prayers. It would really be a shame to see the system go away like this. Hope everything is well with you and let me know when you find out something.  
Support Command,  
Dale_

Cappie's heart began to race even faster when he realized that the executive board was due to meet in two days and he hadn't even finished the video presentation yet. He looked over at Caleb who was still sound asleep and decided to work on it until he woke up again. He opened what he had already started and began putting in Ashleigh's and Beaver's and some of the other videos he had received since he last worked on it. It surprised him that it only took a half an hour and all the videos were put together and it was perfect. He was just about to press record to burn it to a DVD when he realized the most important video of them all was missing; his video.

Cappie quickly got the video camera and set it up on the desk in front of him. He adjusted the computer monitor so it would shine a little light on his face in the video and pressed record.

"Hi, I'm Cappie and I guess you could consider me the mastermind behind this whole video presentation thing," he began. "When I heard there possibly wasn't going to be a Greek system anymore I was shocked. The Greek system has made me everything that I am today and I know being a part of a sorority or fraternity has been a huge influence on other's lives besides my own. This video may be a little longer than the rest but I really want you guys to know and understand my story and why saving the Greek system is so important to me.

"When looking back at my childhood I can tell you it was anything but stable. My parents are free-spirited hippies and I was basically their tag-a-long. I never had a real place to call home throughout my childhood. We bounced between Indian tribes, wheat silos and too many campgrounds to count from the time I could remember until I started to CRU. I have to admit that it wasn't all that bad. Not many kids can say that they've seen the different sides of the world and cultures like I have. And even though we didn't have a constant home my parents tried to keep one constant in my life and that was my summer trips to camp Kitchiwawa. I started going there when I was about ten and up until the summer before freshman year. It was my first real chance to make friends in life. Since we did so much moving around when I was younger I neglected to even try to make friends because I knew how hard the goodbyes were going to be months later when my parents decided it was time to move.

"At camp Kitchiwawa I met my best friend. You guys may know his as Evan Chambers but he'll always be known as Little Kush Kush to me. Oh, but don't tell him I told you that; he'll pretty much kill me if I told anyone. You see the camp had kind of a tribal theme which I believe is the reason my parents chose it in the first place. Evan's given name at camp was Little Kush Kush, mine was Little Tek Tek. We were never really sure how or why the counselors gave us those names but I teased Evan for years because I always thought they gave him that name because he had a nice tush to push. I should probably stop now with the embarrassing stories for Evan. If anyone asks you never heard it from me."

Cappie let out a little laugh as he turned to check on Caleb before continuing.

"Anyway, Evan eventually chose to go to CRU for college and since he was pretty much my only friend in the world, I decided to join him," Cappie continued. "The summer before freshman year we would stay up for hours talking about living together in the dorms and taking the same classes and going to a few parties. Little did I know that Evan turned into a little wild child wanna-be in the break between camp and the start of school. He showed up with a goatee and had beer ready in the fridge when I arrived. It all sounded like something I would do, not the goody-two-shoes Evan that I had known. You can imagine that I was even more dumbfounded when he asked me to rush a fraternity with him.

"I always thought fraternities were elitist and obnoxious but then Evan made sure to point out the amount of girls who flock to fraternity guys and I was sold. So I went to rush with him and at first I really hated it. Every house seemed to have a type of guy they were looking for and I wasn't it. I was about to give up and go back to the dorm when Evan encouraged me to try one more house; Kappa Tau Gamma. I'm not sure if I really should be telling you this but it's a part of the story anyway so I am. When I walked into Kappa Tau I walked into the biggest, baddest party I have ever seen. There was alcohol, ice luges, girls, games, quite possibly my biggest dream come true. I went to the ice luge right away and impressed the brothers with my alcohol consumption abilities. Again, probably shouldn't say that but stay with me here, it's all a part of the story.

"I could tell just being there that one night that these were my type of guys. Sure they were slackers but they knew how to have fun and they knew how to have each other's backs. I finally felt the possibility of going from having just one good friend to having fifty or more and finally finding somewhere where I belong.

"It turned out that Evan and I were like a packaged deal when it came to rushing Kappa Tau. He wasn't really their type of guy but they wanted me so badly that they went ahead and gave Evan a bid anyway since he was my friend. So we rushed together for a couple of weeks before Evan began to get a little jealous of all the attention I was getting. In the end he ended up dropping out of KT and rushing Omega Chi which looking back on, I'm OK with that. Omega Chi was the type of guys that Evan was born to be with. He wasn't the wild child he was trying to be; he was the preppy rich kid which is what Omega Chi was all about. Looking back on the whole thing it is kind of interesting to see how each rushee tends to fit into each house perfectly. That's the beautiful thing about the Greek system at CRU; there is a house for every person to fit into whether they are a jock, a slacker, a nerd or a preppy rich kid. There is something for everyone.

"Evan and I began to grow apart when we ended up in different houses. I have to admit that I'm kind of the one to blame for that. I was always at the KT house for pledging, parties, karaoke or whatever else the brothers came up with for me to do. Even though I was losing my best friend, I was having an absolute blast with my KT brothers. I guess this is the time I should introduce Casey into the story. Evan and I both met Casey at the Kappa Tau rush party freshman year. And even though he saw her first, I was the one who she was drawn to. Casey and I started dating and the three of us would hang out a lot. We called ourselves the three musketeers because we were pretty much inseparable before Evan and I began to really grow apart. She was rushing Zeta Beta Zeta at the time so we were all familiar and involved in the Greek system. Looking back at it the signs were all there that Evan had a crush on Casey. Maybe if I would have noticed it at the time I would have held onto Casey a little tighter and been a little more attentive to her. But nonetheless my entire life at that time was about Kappa Tau and having fun, even if I was madly in love with Casey.

"I stood Casey up the night of the Greek ball. Apparently when she came looking for me at my dorm all she found was Evan because I was too busy playing video games with my big brother at Kappa Tau. And being the gentleman that Evan is, he went ahead and took her to the dance instead. When I found the two of them there slow dancing I blew up. Nasty names and punches were thrown between the two of us and the end result was Evan and Casey together and me with nothing. I believe whole-heartedly in the saying that you don't know what you have until it's gone. Once Casey was out of my life I really felt empty inside. I quickly moved into the Kappa Tau house and away from Evan. I sat in my room for hours sulking in my own pity. My brothers tried everything they could to cheer me up. They threw me a party, they found some girls to try and take my mind off Casey, they even pushed one of my pledge brothers off the roof just to try and get me to laugh. It really wasn't until the night before initiation that I finally came out of my slump.

"My pledge class was instructed that we had to spend the night outside the night before initiation and work on our pledge bonding. To this day I'm not really sure how it happened but at one point we found ourselves all sitting in a circle just talking about live and whatever else that was on our minds. I had never really opened up about my childhood to anyone but Evan and Casey but that night I spilled everything to my pledge brothers. I even told them the entire story between Casey and Evan and I. And to this day, I have never gotten more honest and genuine advice in my life. It's like they all somehow knew what I was going through and knew what to say to make things better. After that night and initiation the next day I felt like a new person.

"I feel like my entire life I had been searching for a place to belong and a real family. Kappa Tau changed my life. The four years at the Kappa Tau house was probably the longest time I had spent in one place my entire life. And right down the hall from me were fifty of my best friends and more importantly, my family. They were there to help me through school projects, advice in life decisions and probably most importantly, every time Casey Cartwright broke my heart. They always knew when that happened because it would be the first time in months the house would be clean. Each time I felt so close to getting her back, I was let down and my way of coping with it was cleaning. Every one of my brothers knew the whole story and I think secretly they were all rooting for the two of us to finally wake up and get together. They confronted me one night. They knew how much turmoil I felt going through the back and forth thing with Casey and they basically gave me an ultimatum; either give up on her or profess my love to her because they couldn't take seeing me the way I was when it came to her anymore.

"So instead of making a decision I did what I do best and went out to a bar on the outskirts of town and got drunk. And who did I call when I needed help getting home? Casey of course. Things happened that night that I won't go into detail about but a month later Casey found out she was pregnant and once again my entire world changed. We went back and forth for weeks trying to figure out the right thing to do and realized the best decision was the keep the baby. My brothers were amazing through everything. They offered so much support and guidance through the crazy time I was going through with Casey. And really, if it wasn't for them giving me that ultimatum that night, Casey never would have gotten pregnant and I certainly wouldn't be where I am today. It was their way of giving some tough love but in the end everything turned out to be alright. It took me a while to realize that I had finally gotten everything I wanted in life, even if it probably wasn't the best way of getting it. I finally had several good friends, the girl of my dreams and was starting a family of my own, something I didn't think I would ever have.

"Casey and I graduated, got married and Cadence April Cappington was born October 2nd 2010. I can't even begin to explain to you how much that little girl means to me. Hearing her call me daddy is the sweetest sound to my ears. She is the perfect blend of Casey's sweetness with a little of my rowdiness in her. Everyone says she's a splitting image of me with her brown curly hair and big blue eyes. I know I'm going to be chasing many boys away from her when she gets older and I'm OK with that. I know how teenage boys are; I used to be one. Casey and I just had our second child."

Cappie turned and picked Caleb up out of his bassinette.

"This is Caleb Austin Cappington. Say hi little man," said Cappie with a smile as he took Caleb's hand and waved it in the air for him. "I was so happy when Casey and I found out that we were having a little boy. I instantly thought of Kappa Tau and how he would be considered a legacy. I want my son to have the same opportunities I had if he chooses to go to CRU. I want him to be able to experience the brotherhood of Kappa Tau and all it has to offer for him. Being a brother isn't just for four years in college. My Kappa Tau brothers are my brothers for life. If any one of them called and needed help I would do everything in my power to help. That's why I'm so passionate about this video presentation. I'm not only trying to save the Greek system for the past and present brothers but for the future ones too. Don't rob Caleb of that experience. Don't take away the possibility of finding a family for another student out there who may have had a childhood like I did. Behind all the partying and pranks there is a family in each sorority and fraternity house. I may have my own family now but I know my Kappa Tau family is always going to be there for me. Don't break up those families and prevent others from experiencing that bond, please keep the Greek system alive."

With one last nod of the head Cappie leaned forward and stopped the camera. He sat back for a second staring at Caleb when heard footsteps behind him. He turned to see Casey walking towards him and wiping a tear off her cheek.

"That was amazing Cap," she said as she approached him.

"What are you doing up?" Cappie asked as he put Caleb back in the bassinette.

"Mother's instinct," said Casey with a shrug of her shoulders. "I'm starting to get on a schedule of waking up every few hours with him. When I woke up this time I thought I would come down and check on you and that's when I heard you starting the video."

"So you heard the whole thing huh?" Cappie asked as he pulled Casey into his lap.

"Every bit of it," said Casey as she wiped another tear out of her eye. "I just hate to hear how much I hurt you in the past."

"Hey, it's the past," said Cappie as he wrapped his arms around her tightly. "I'm happier now than I have ever been and I owe it all to you."

"It's amazing how much that one night changed our entire lives," said Casey as she leaned her head on Cappie's shoulder. "I didn't think I was going to make it having to deal with school and being pregnant and what was going to happen with you and me and—"

"Sometimes you just have to look at the bright side when you feel like life is pouring down on you like rain," Cappie interrupted her.

"And what is that bright side?" Casey asked lifting her head to look at him.

"Well, the only time a rainbow comes along is when it rains," said Cappie with a smile. "I like to think of you as my rainbow."

Casey smiled back at him. "I love you Cap," she said.

"I love you too Cas—" was all Cappie could get out before Casey leaned down and crashed her lips against his in a deep kiss.

* * *

_**A/N: Well, here is the long awaited last chapter before the epilogue. Once again, sorry it took me a while to get it posted. It took me a while to write and I had to make sure Cappie's speech was perfect so it took me a while to figure out exactly what I wanted to write. I really hope you guys liked this chapter and of course the story as a whole. With only one chapter left I'd like to encourage any and all reviews. I know there are a lot of people who read and don't review and that's OK but I'd still love to hear from you since I have put a lot of time and effort into this story :0)**_

_**I can't promise when I'll have the epilogue up. I know what time period it's going to be and what generally is going to happen but I want to make sure I wrap everything up nicely. Let me know if there is anything in particular you want to read in the epilogue and I'll do my best to add it in. Thanks again for reading!**_


	159. Epilogue

EPILOGUE

Five and a half years later…

Evan sat patiently at a table by himself on the patio of Bravo, a restaurant in downtown New York City. He had been there over fifteen minutes when he finally saw the man he was waiting for walk into the restaurant in a t-shirt, pair of dark blue jeans and sunglasses.

"Cap, you seriously couldn't have dressed any nicer?" Evan asked as Cappie approached the table.

"Ev, this is the way I always dress," Cappie replied as he took his sunglasses off. "I believe in being comfortable and relaxed at all times."

"Cap, you're part owner of a multi-million dollar restaurant chain," said Evan. "I expect someone in that position to be walking around in a suit and tie at all times."

"Too bad I only own like one suit," said Cappie with a laugh.

"I thought you were at least going to cut your hair," Evan groaned as he watched Cappie with his patent long disheveled hair sit in the seat across from him.

Cappie just rolled his eyes at Evan. "Since when did you become my mother?" he asked.

"Since The Beaver has gone national and you hired me to be the company's global business manager," said Evan as he loosened the tie around his neck a little. "It's my job to look out for the brand and uphold our reputation."

"And you're doing a fine job," said Cappie with a smirk. "But always remember one thing; I'm still above you on the ladder. So if I want to wear jeans, I'll wear jeans."

"Yes, I'm pretty sure that's the hundredth time this month you have reminded me of that," said Evan grabbing some papers out of his briefcase and putting them on the table.

"Relax Ev," said Cappie noticing Evan was getting a little too "business" on him at the moment. "This lunch isn't about all business stuff."

"Wait, what?" Evan asked as he stopped shuffling through the papers.

"Just what I said," said Cappie as he reached over and took the stack of papers away from Evan. "I already met with the investors yesterday for the new spot downtown. They're all set up so we can just enjoy this lunch as friends."

"You met with them without me?" Evan asked. "I told you I could have been here yesterday if you needed me to. I could have gotten an earlier flight."

"It's not a big deal, we didn't need you," said Cappie. "Beaver and I met with them on our own and he took the first flight back to Chicago this morning. Besides, you needed to be at home for as long as possible anyway. I know how much Rebecca hates when you travel for long periods of time with the kids around now. So I promised her you would only be away a couple of days."

"If you already met with the investors then why am I here?" Evan asked.

"Well your first duty is to stop thinking so much about work and have lunch with an old friend," said Cappie as he smiled at Evan. "And then we'll head over to the location and I need you here to run the financials for the equipment and everything we will need."

Evan just gave Cappie a strange look as he sat back in his seat.

"Come on Ev, even you have to admit that over the past three years you and I have become less of friends when we started this business relationship," said Cappie.

"That's not true," said Evan. "I still consider you one of my best friends."

"And I feel the same way," Cappie added. "But when is the last time we've sat down and just talked about life and had a man to man conversation that didn't include something about the business?"

Evan thought about Cappie's question for a second. "I guess it has been a while," he finally responded.

"Good, so put this stuff away," said Cappie as he handed Evan's papers back to him. "And order a beer."

"Did I hear you say you wanted to order a beer?" asked a waitress near their table.

"Yes, two please," said Cappie.

"Sure thing," the waitress replied as she walked away.

"Now," said Cappie turning back to Evan. "How are Larry, Curly and Moe?"

Evan rolled his eyes at Cappie. "You know their names are Liam, Owen and Gavin."

"Oh yes, my bad," said Cappie with a smirk. "Seriously though, how are they?"

"They're fine," Evan replied. "Liam and Gavin actually learned how to climb out of their cribs last night so it looks like Rebecca and I need to start looking into other options."

"Case and I got Cadence her first bed when she was around two," said Cappie. "It's certainly about that time for your three."

"And yet another expense that I have to buy three of because we had triplets," said Evan with a sigh.

"I still don't know how you guys do it," said Cappie. "I'm just glad my little soldiers march just fine and didn't have to go through all those fertility treatments you guys went through."

"I'm not sure you're the one to be talking here," said Evan with a smirk. "I don't know many people who have two 'oops' babies in their lives. Maybe your soldiers march a little too good."

Cappie let out a small laugh as the waitress set the beers in front of them. "I guess you do have a point there buddy," he said as he took a drink. "Casey and I weren't planning on having anymore after everything she went through with Caleb but God had other plans I guess."

"How's Cadence taking to the new baby?" Evan asked. "I know you guys had some jealously problems with her when Caleb with born."

"It makes a big difference when they are older that's for sure," said Cappie taking another drink. "She's more helpful with Caitlyn than anything."

"And how about Caleb?" Evan asked.

"He's quite the little man for being just five years old," said Cappie with a smile. "Casey says as long as I'm home he does fine but he can throw a few temper tantrums on her when I'm away."

"That's why Rebecca and I decided to hire a nanny," said Evan. "I know everyone thought it was wrong but sometimes you just need a break from your kids. I'm sure you know what I mean."

"Amen bro," said Cappie as he clanked his glass against Evan's. "There's no doubt we love our kids but it's just nice to get away once in a while."

The two sat back and took in some of the fresh air.

"Thanks Cap," Evan said breaking the silence. "I really did need this."

"I know you did," said Cappie with a smile.

* * *

Cadence walked into the house and slammed her backpack down on the kitchen table.

"Bad day at school?" Casey asked as she looked up from washing some vegetables in the sink.

"Marissa said her parents have plans tonight so I can't spend the night at her house," said Cadence. "Can she stay here?"

"She stayed here with us last weekend," Casey replied as she dried her hands and sat at the table with Cadence. "I know she's your best friend but sometimes you guys need a little time apart."

"You see Aunt Ashleigh almost every day and she's your best friend," Cadence rebutted.

"Yes but that is different," said Casey. "Ashleigh and I are doing work for the restaurants for dad and Beaver."

"When is dad going to be home?" Cadence asked. "He will let Marissa come over."

"Your father won't be home until tomorrow," said Casey. "And there is no use asking him because he will just agree with me."

"Well this weekend is going to be so boring then," Cadence whined.

"That's not true," said Casey as she got up and went back to the sink. "We are going over to grandma and grandpa's tonight for dinner. Uncle Rusty and Jordan are in town so you'll get to see them."

"Really? I haven't seen them in a long time," said Cadence as a small smile came over her face.

"Why don't you take your backpack upstairs and change out of your school clothes," said Casey. "But please be quiet as Caitlyn is taking her nap."

"OK," said Cadence as she picked up her backpack and headed upstairs.

Casey turned and looked at the clock and realized it was about time for Caleb to get off the bus. So she dried her hands once again and sat outside on the porch steps waiting for him like she usually does. A few minutes later his bus pulled up and he excitedly jumped off and ran up the driveway.

"HI MOM!" he yelled as he gave her a hug.

"Hi sweetheart, how was your day at school?" Casey asked as she hugged him back.

"It was good," Caleb replied. "Jimmy puked all over his desk."

Casey couldn't help but laugh a little as she let go of him. "Why is Jimmy puking a good part of your day?" she asked.

"Because it was cool to see," said Caleb as the two of them climbed the steps and went into the house.

Casey helped Caleb take his backpack off and set it on the steps for the next time she goes upstairs.

"I've got some carrots I just got done washing in the sink," said Casey as the two of them walked into the kitchen. "Would you like some with ranch dressing for a snack?"

"Yummy!" said Caleb as he got up in his seat at the kitchen table.

"Were Matthew and Maddison at school today?" Casey asked as she poured some dressing into a cup for Caleb.

"Yup," Caleb replied. "I sat next to Matt at lunch. We told Maddie she couldn't sit with us though."

"Why couldn't she sit with you two?" Casey asked.

"Because she has cooties mommy," said Caleb. "All girls have cooties."

"Now that is not very nice," said Casey as she set the plate in front of Caleb and sat down next to him. "Maddison is a very nice girl and she is your friend. You shouldn't be mean to her like that."

"Yeah, she was crying," said Caleb with a somber look on his face.

"I remember just a year ago Maddison was your girlfriend," said Casey as she took a carrot off his plate and bit into it. "You two would play house and run around holding hands. You even said you wanted to marry her."

"Mommy, I'm only five," said Caleb as he held up his small five fingers to her. "I can't get married until I'm at least ten."

Casey laughed. "Try not until you're in your twenties," she said. "But you really should apologize to Maddison the next time you see her OK?" she said in a more serious voice.

"OK mommy," said Caleb as he picked up a carrot and dipped it in the dressing.

"That's my boy," said Casey as she stood up and rubbed her hand on the top of Caleb's long shaggy hair that was just like his fathers, only much lighter in color.

Seconds later Cadence came prancing down the steps in a skirt and t-shirt. She had taken the ponytail out of her brunette hair and put a headband in around the curls that flowed down to the middle of her back.

"You look very nice," said Casey.

"Thanks," said Cadence as she sat down on the couch and turned on the television. "I wanted to look pretty for grandma and grandpa and Uncle Rusty and Aunt Jordan."

Just then the phone rang and it didn't take long for Cadence to jump off the couch and run over to get it. She loved talking on the phone as of recent.

"Hello," she said answering.

"Who is this?" said Cappie on the other end playfully.

"Dad, it's me, Cadence," she replied.

"I know who you are silly," said Cappie. "What are you doing?"

"Just got home from school," Cadence replied. "Caleb is having a snack, Caitlyn is sleeping and mom is doing whatever stuff she does in the kitchen."

"Well can I talk to your mom?" Cappie asked.

"One second, can I ask you a question first," said Cadence.

"Sure," Cappie replied. "What's up?"

"Can I get a cell phone?" Cadence asked.

"Cadence, we've been through this before," said Cappie with a sigh. "You are too young to have a cell phone."

"Well Marissa said her parents are getting her one for Christmas," said Cadence. "Why can she have one and not me?"

"If Marissa jumped off a bridge would you do it too?" Cappie rebutted.

"Daaaaad," Cadence whined. "You always ask me that question and you know the answer is no. I don't know why you keep bringing it up."

"I'm bringing it up to show you that you don't have to do whatever Marissa does in this life," said Cappie.

"Pretty please dad?" Cadence continued to whine. "I'll love you forever."

Still to this day hearing any of his kids tell him they love him brings butterflies to Cappie's stomach. "You're mom and I will talk about it," he finally replied. "But I'm not promising anything."

"Thanks dad! You're the best!" said Cadence as she passed the phone quickly off to Casey while she was ahead and ran back into the living room.

"She's not giving up on that dang cell phone is she?" Casey asked as she got onto the phone.

"It's alright, I'm already planning on buying her a toy cell phone for Christmas and having her unwrap it," said Cappie in a devious voice.

"Oooo, I like the way you think Mr. Cappington," said Casey with a laugh.

"Are you holding the house down alright?" Cappie asked.

"Of course," Casey replied. "But I miss you."

"I miss you too babe," said Cappie. "I promise this will be my last business trip for a while."

"You always say that," said Casey half jokingly. "But with twenty-five restaurants all over the states there is bound for something to go wrong somewhere that you need to run to and fix."

"Maybe, but next time I'll just send Beave or Evan to do it," said Cappie.

"So you'll be home tomorrow evening?" Casey asked.

"That's the plan," Cappie replied. "I'll give you a call when I land and you can come and get me."

"Sounds go—"

"CALEB STOP CHANGING THE CHANNEL!" Cadence yelled cutting Casey off.

"Guess I should go play referee," said Casey. "Love you."

"Love you too," Cappie replied.

"Bye."

"Bye," said Cappie as he hung up the phone.

"Sir, can I help you?" the woman asked in front of him.

"Yes, I'm here to check in for my flight to Chicago," Cappie replied handing her his ID.

"Ah yes Mr. Cappington, I have you listed on the flight leaving at five-thirty this evening," she stated after checking in the computer.

"That's exactly right," said Cappie with a smile as he took his ticket from her.

* * *

Casey stood in her parents' kitchen rocking Caitlyn back and forth as she watched her mom pull the ham out of the oven.

"Are the Thompson's still joining us?" Mrs. Cartwright asked.

"As far as I know they are," said Casey. "I thought Rusty and Jordan were going to be here by now too."

"Russ called a little bit ago, they are running late," Mrs. Cartwright replied. "I guess they had to stop for a few more restroom breaks then they planned."

Just then the doorbell rang.

"I'll get it," said Casey as she walked to the door.

"Hi Aunt Casey!" exclaimed Maddison as she opened the door.

"Hi sweetheart," said Casey as she stepped aside and let them in.

"Can I hold the baby?" Maddison asked eagerly.

"Maddie, we just got here," said Ashleigh as he took her hand. "Maybe later."

"Actually I could use a little break," said Casey with a smile. "Why don't you come in the living room and sit in one of the chairs."

"Yay!" Maddison exclaimed as she ran into the living room.

"My dad is outside with Caleb and Cadence if you want to take Matt out to join them," said Casey.

"Sounds great," said Beaver as he took Matthew's hand and headed outside.

Casey carefully set Caitlyn in Maddison's arms and sat on the couch next to her.

"Have I ever mentioned how stressful it is having twins?" Ashleigh sighed as she plopped down in one of the living room chairs.

"A few times," said Casey with a smirk.

"It took us like a half an hour just to get ready to come here tonight," said Ashleigh. "A freaking half an hour!"

"I guess it could be worse," said Casey. "You could have had triplets."

"Yeah, thank god for that," said Ashleigh with a small laugh.

"It was Matt that had to go to the bathroom three times, not me," Maddison piped in. "I told him he shouldn't have drank a lot of juice."

"I know dear," said Ashleigh with a deep breath.

"My arm is getting tired; can I go out and play?" Maddison asked.

"Sure," Casey replied as she took Caitlyn from her and watched Maddison run outside.

"All Matt could talk about this afternoon was how much some kind named Jimmy vomited all over the classroom," said Ashleigh as she leaned back in her chair.

"Yeah, same with Caleb," said Casey with a small laugh. "He also told me that they didn't let Maddie sit with them at lunch again. Did she say anything to you about that?"

"She did," said Ashleigh with a sigh. "I just don't know what to do. She's been so attached to Matt and even Caleb for so long that hanging out with the boys is what she does. She hasn't mentioned one girl from school. I'm scared she has no friends."

"That can't be true," Casey reassured her. "Maddie is a very cute and outgoing girl. I'm sure she has a couple of girls that she talks to in the class."

"The poor girl said she sat alone at lunch when Matt and Caleb wouldn't let her sit with them," said Ashleigh. "I feel like I've failed as a mother. I've tried so hard to make her like a little mini-me that I'm not sure if I've allowed her to grow into being her own person."

"Ash, she's only five years old," said Casey. "Don't freak out too much about this. She'll make some friends. I also told Caleb what he did wasn't nice and that he should apologize to her. Not sure if he'll remember to do it but I'll remind him if needed."

"Thanks Case," said Ashleigh. "And maybe you could have Cadence talk to her too? It may be better if a younger girl kind of talks to her about making friends and things."

"I'm sure she'll be happy to do that," said Casey. "Maddie has always been like a little sister to Cadence until Caitlyn here came along."

There was a brief pause as Casey set Caitlyn down on the couch next to her and turned to Ashleigh.

"So, everything still going OK with you and Beave?" Casey asked.

When the twins were around two years old Beaver and Ashleigh hit a rough spot in their relationship. The stress of raising two kids who were literally in their terrible-twos was a little too much for each of them. They began fighting more and one large fight eventually resulted in Beaver staying over at the Cappington house for a few days to let things calm down. Ever since they have been trying really hard to work on their relationship and making time for each other which was something they weren't doing when the kids were younger.

"It actually couldn't be better," said Ashleigh with a smile. "We had a date night earlier in the week and Beave took me on a dinner cruise. We ate and watched the sunset on the lake and it was really nice."

"I'm so glad to hear that," said Casey.

"And I'm pretty sure we've come to an agreement about something," added Ashleigh.

"What's that?" Casey asked.

"No more kids," said Ashleigh with a small laugh.

"Well just be sure to take the right precautions if that's the case," said Casey. "You've seen what can happen if you don't," she smiled as she leaned over and kissed Caitlyn on the cheek.

"Yeah but you and Cap I think were always meant to have another kid," said Ashleigh. "You just didn't want to with all the health things you went through with Caleb. Beaver and I have come to the realization that another kid may just ruin what we've worked so hard to keep together. We're as happy as could be right where we are."

Casey was about to speak when the doorbell rang again.

"I'll get it," said Ashleigh as she stood up.

"Hey Ash!" said Rusty as she answered the door.

"Hey you two!" said Ashleigh as she gave Rusty and Jordan hugs.

"There's my newlyweds," said Casey as the two of them walked into the living room.

"Case, we've been married for like four years now," said Rusty with a laugh as he hugged Casey. "You can stop calling us that."

"Well you're the last people I know who have gotten married so you'll always be the newlyweds to me," said Casey as she backed away from Rusty.

"Oh my Jordan, you look radiant!" said Casey as she gave her a hug.

"Thanks sis," said Jordan as she backed away.

"And how is our soon to be bundle of joy?" Casey asked as she rubbed Jordan's stomach.

"Making me go to the bathroom way too much," said Jordan with a laugh.

"Yeah, I swear we had to stop every fifteen miles on the way here so she could pee," said Rusty as he picked Caitlyn up off the couch. "I don't know how she even has any fluid left in her."

"Oh be nice," said Ashleigh as she playfully hit Rusty on the arm. "It's not easy being pregnant."

"I've got a bunch of newborn baby clothes that Caitlyn doesn't fit into anymore," said Casey. "Remind me to give them to you before you guys head home."

"Thanks Case," said Jordan.

"Have you guys thought about any names yet?" Ashleigh asked.

"We've got a couple," said Rusty as he looked at Jordan and they smiled at each other.

"Tell me, tell me!" said Casey.

"I don't know, do we really want to tell?" Jordan asked as she looked at Rusty.

"We should be mean and make them wait like they did to us with all their kids," said Rusty.

"That's not true! I told you Caitlyn's name before she was born!" said Casey.

"Yeah, like three days before you went into labor," said Jordan with a laugh.

"Plleeeeaase," whined Ashleigh. "We really want to know."

"OK, if you must know," said Rusty with a deep breath. "The three we've narrowed it down to are Isabella, Zoey and Savannah."

"Awww, I like all of those," said Casey.

"So do we," said Jordan nodding her head. "That's the problem. I'm not sure if we'll be able to decide."

"Maybe you guys should just wait until she's born," said Casey. "Maybe you'll take one look at her and know what one of the names would fit best."

"Good idea sis," said Rusty. "But, uh, I think you should take Caitlyn back. She smells a little funky."

"Don't you want to change her and get some practice?" Casey asked as she took the baby from Rusty.

"I'll take you up on that offer another time," said Rusty with a wink and a smile as he watched Casey roll her eyes and take the baby upstairs.

* * *

After dinner everyone gathered in the living room to watch a Charlie Brown Halloween movie and munch on some popcorn. Beaver and Rusty weren't too interested in the movie and eventually found themselves sitting outside on the back deck, each sipping a beer.

"So Spitter is going to be a daddy," said Beaver as he turned to look at Rusty. "It's still hard for me to believe."

"I feel the same way about you bro," said Rusty as he took a sip or his beer. "You're certainly not the same Beaver I knew while living at Kappa Tau."

"I hope that's not a bad thing," said Beaver with a concerned look.

"No, not at all," Rusty replied. "I like this Beaver too. I guess it's just weird to see how much we've all grown up over the years."

"Are you still working with Dale?" Beaver asked.

"Sure am," Rusty replied. "With all the competition Dale and I had in school, I thought it would be hard for us to really work together but we actually make a pretty good team."

"Anything new going on with him?" Beaver asked.

"Did I tell you he got married a few months ago?" Rusty asked.

"No, I don't believe you did," said Beaver. "Honestly I'm a little shocked that he actually found someone to marry him."

"Hey now, Dale may be a little weird and nerdy but deep down he is a really nice guy," said Rusty. "He met Natalie about a year ago and—"

"Wow, they got married quickly," interrupted Beaver.

"Yeah, it was just a courthouse ceremony," said Rusty. "They didn't see any reason to wait."

"Do you like his wife?" Beaver asked.

"Of course, I have to work with her just about every day too," Rusty replied.

"Oh, she works at the same company as you two?" Beaver asked.

"Yup," Rusty replied. "She's very nice and kind of nerdy just like Dale. So they're perfect for each other."

"Are you making decent money at your job?" Beaver asked. "Because you know you can always come work for me if you need some more cash flow."

"I'm making plenty of money," said Rusty with a smile. "Plus Jordan booked a lot of weddings this past summer which has helped us buy quite a bit of the things we need for the baby."

"I always forget she's a photographer," said Beaver. "Ash and I should have her take some pictures of the twins sometime."

"She's great at what she does," said Rusty. "I'm sure she would be happy to do it."

There was a brief pause as both men took drinks of their beers.

"So have you been by the house lately?" Beaver asked.

"I was there just last week actually," Rusty replied. "The new president this year is a guy named Dave but they call him Cornhole."

"Why is that?" Beaver asked.

"I guess when he was a freshman they had a cornhole tournament with the Lambda Sigs and Omega Chis and he was the star," Rusty replied. "So he's had the name ever since."

"Are they doing alright financially?" Beaver asked. "I sent over a check at the beginning of the year as a donation to the party fund but I haven't heard from anyone since."

"I'm sure they are fine and your contribution was very much appreciated," said Rusty with a laugh. "But ever since the entire Greek system was saved the University is putting more money into the houses. They were even able to cut dues this semester."

"I still can't believe they almost got rid of the entire Greek system at CRU," said Beaver shaking his head. "Thank god Cap came up with that video idea. I'm not sure if things would have worked out as well if we hadn't done that."

"I agree," said Rusty. "And even though we're having a girl right now, maybe down the line we'll have a boy that can be a future Kappa Tau."

"That would be nice," said Beaver as he took a drink of his beer. "I have the same hopes for Matt but we'll just have to see what direction he goes in life."

Just then the back door opened.

"Hey Russ, this movie is over," said Jordan. "I'm pretty tired so I think I'm going to head up to bed."

"OK babe, I'll be up later," Rusty replied as Jordan bent down and kissed him.

"Any plans for tomorrow?" Beaver asked as Rusty and him stood up and began to walk to the door.

"Not that I know of," Rusty replied. "You have anything in mind?"

"I believe the CRU football game is on television at noon," said Beaver. "If you want we could get together and watch it."

"Yeah, that sounds great," said Rusty. "I'll give you a call when I get up in the morning."

Both men walked back into a commotion in the living room.

"Plleeeeaaase mom!" begged Caleb.

"Plleeeeaaase mom!" begged Matthew.

"What's going on?" Beaver asked.

"Matt wants Caleb to come spend the night," said Ashleigh.

"It's already getting a little late," said Beaver as he looked at his watch.

"I'll be real good Uncle Beaver," said Caleb. "Plleeeaaase."

"It's fine with me if it's OK with your mom," Beaver replied.

"I don't know Caleb, you don't have any clothes packed or anything," said Casey.

"I'm sure Matt has some pajamas and clothes Caleb can borrow," said Ashleigh. "And who knows, Caleb may already have an outfit or two at my house that has been left there before."

"You may have a point there," said Casey with a small laugh.

"So yes mommy?" Caleb asked.

"Yes, you can go," Casey said as she knelt down next to Caleb. "But you have to promise me that you'll be on your best behavior and listen to Uncle Beaver and Aunt Ashleigh and include Maddison too OK?"

"Yes mommy, I will," Caleb replied as he gave her a hug.

"This is not fair!" Cadence suddenly piped in. "How come he can spend the night somewhere and I couldn't have Marissa over?"

"Cadence I told you why earlier," said Casey as she stood up.

"You wanna stay here and hang out with me tonight?" Rusty asked.

Cadence looked over at Rusty with a huge smile on her face. "Are you serious?" she asked.

"Sure," Rusty replied. "Jordan is tired and already going to bed. It'll be fun to have a little time for us to hang out and talk and catch up."

"Mom can I?" Cadence turned to Casey and asked.

"I don't see why not," Casey replied.

"Oh thank you thank you thank you!" Cadence exclaimed as she wrapped her arms around Casey. "We are going to have so much fun Uncle Rusty!"

"I'm sure I have a shirt or something upstairs you can wear to bed Cadence," said Mrs. Cartwright.

"Thanks grandma," said Cadence.

Over the next several minutes the Thompson's and Caleb piled into the car and left and Cadence and Rusty made their way into the kitchen to see what kind of cookies they could snack on.

"Well I guess I'll get going now," said Casey. "Looks like it's just me and Caitlyn tonight."

"Are you sure you don't want to leave her with us?" Mrs. Cartwright asked.

"Don't tempt me mom," said Casey with a smirk.

"I'm serious Case," said Mrs. Cartwright. "We still have the crib set up in one of the guest rooms. You know your father and I would love to have her for some grandma and grandpa time. I feel like now that Cappie's parents live in the area they see the kids more than we do."

"Now that's not true," said Casey. "You guys get them both equally."

"Well, in any case, when is the last time you've had a night completely to yourself?" Mrs. Cartwright asked.

Casey thought for a second. "Not since Cadence has been born," she replied.

"All the more reason to let her stay here with us," said Mrs. Cartwright. "You can go home and take a hot bath and relax and just not have to worry about anything for the night."

Casey hesitated. "She's still pretty young mom…." Casey began.

"Case, she's seven months old now," said Mrs. Cartwright. "She will be just fine and in very good hands."

Casey took a deep breath as she watched her mom go over and pick Caitlyn out of her carrier.

"Are you sure?" she asked once more.

"Positive, now go," said Mrs. Cartwright.

"Thanks mom," said Casey as she leaned over and kissed Caitlyn on the cheek.

* * *

Casey pulled the car into the garage, gathered her things and went into the house. It was a very strange feeling at first. Usually the house is filled with noise from the kids running around or playing or arguing or crying. For a second she really didn't know what to do with herself. But in no time she found a gallon of rocky road ice cream in the freezer and sat down on the couch, catching up on the latest episode of House as she ate it.

She was about half way through the show when the doorbell rang. Her heart began to race as she looked at the clock and wondered who on earth could be at her door at almost nine o'clock at night. She grabbed her cell phone as she slowly walked to the door in case she needed to call for help. But all of her fears went away as she looked through the peephole and found her husband standing on the other side of the door.

"Cap, what are you doing here?" she asked as she opened the door.

"Come with me," said Cappie as he reached out his hand.

"Hold on, I've got to the put the ice cream away and turn off the—," Casey began.

"Don't worry about it," said Cappie with a smile. "Lock the door and come with me."

"Uh, OK," said Casey as she took Cappie's hand and shut the door. At this point her mind was going crazy trying to figure out what was going on.

But Cappie was oddly silent. All he did was squeeze her hand as the two of them turned onto the sidewalk and began to walk down the street.

"Are you going to tell me what is going on?" Casey finally asked. "I'm kind of freaked out here."

"I'm taking you to show you something," Cappie replied.

"Was this something planned?" Casey asked suspiciously. "Is this why magically all the kids are spending the night away from the house?"

Cappie just turned to her and smiled. "It actually worked a lot better than I originally planned when Caleb wanted to stay with Matt," he said. "It was originally planned to have them all stay at your mom's but it still worked out fine."

"I knew something sounded a little strange about that," said Casey. "But I didn't think any of it would have involved you for any reason."

"Never underestimate the sneakiness of your husband," said Cappie as he leaned over and gave her a kiss on her neck.

The two of them walked for a few more minutes and eventually came to an open field with some newer houses on each side. Cappie led Casey into the middle of the field and stopped. Casey looked around with a confused look on her face.

"Is it safe for us to be out here in the middle of this field in the dark?" she asked.

"Shhh," said Cappie as he put his finger on her lips. "I have taken you here for a reason."

"OK," said Casey looking into his eyes. "What is it?"

"You are standing on our field right now," said Cappie. "This is our property."

"Interesting…." was all Casey could say, still not understanding what any of that meant.

Cappie let out a little chuckle. "You don't get what I'm getting at here?" he asked.

Casey just shook her head no.

"Well obviously with our new extended family our current house is not big enough," said Cappie as he took Casey's hands into his. "I don't know about you, but I really don't want Caitlyn sleeping in our room with us until she's eighteen."

"No, that's probably not a good idea," said Casey as she felt a few tears come as she started to realize what was going on.

"So I looked around at a few places but nothing really had everything that I felt we needed," Cappie continued. "And that's when I decided that you and I should just build our own house. That way we can have whatever we want however we want it."

"Really?" Casey asked as a few tears fell down her cheeks.

"Yup," said Cappie as he pushed a strand of Casey's hair behind her ear. "We have a meeting with the builders and designers next week to start planning."

"So I'm really standing where our future home is going to be?" Casey asked as she looked around.

"You are," Cappie replied. "It's not too far from our current house so you'll still be near Ashleigh and it's got a lot more land space for a bigger back yard for the kids to play in."

"I don't know what to say Cap," said Casey. "Other than thank you. This is so amazing. I never thought I would be able to live in a house that I helped design."

"I'm just glad you like it," said Cappie.

Casey wrapped her arms around him tightly and gave him a kiss as she backed away.

"There's one more reason why I decided tonight was the night I was going to share this information with you," said Cappie as he put his hands on Casey's waist and pulled her closer to him.

Casey just looked into his eyes, waiting for him to go on.

"Exactly ten years ago today we were sitting in my room and you asked me where I wanted to be in ten years," Cappie began.

"Oh god Cap," said Casey as tears instantly flooded her face.

"And I told you that all I wanted in ten years was to be with you," said Cappie, continuing to stare deep into Casey's eyes. "And here we are; I got exactly what I wanted. My life couldn't be any better and I would be absolutely nothing without you Casey. I just hope this is where you wanted to be in ten years too."

"Cap, I couldn't be happier," said Casey through her tears. "This is exactly where I want to be."

"So Casey Cappington I must ask," said Cappie as he leaned down so his nose just barely brushed against hers. "I know where I want to be for the rest of my life. Do you?"

"I wanna be with you."

* * *

_**A/N: So here it is...the end :0( It's kind of bitter sweet but I hope you all enjoyed the story over the past two years. I decided to post the final chapter today because exactly two years ago I started this story on the same day. Hard to believe it's been so long...**_

_**Thanks again for all the reviews and dedicated readers of this story. I hope I've kept the Cappie/Casey relationship live on just a little longer for us all since the show is over now. And I hope you guys liked the ending and where everyone has ended up. I personally love the whole 'I wanna be with you' moment and had to bring it back at some point. Thanks again for reading!**_


End file.
